Supernatural Entanglements
by flacedice
Summary: With no other alternative, Prince Doumeki turns to the mysterious Lord Kimihiro for help and finds himself getting increasingly entangled with the lord and the supernatural. Series of interconnected oneshots.
1. Pale As Porcelain

AN: Prince Doumeki and Lord Kimihiro. Gotta love 'em. Here's their first meeting. Posted for background to the upcoming Masqued Intentions.

SUPERNATURAL ENTANGLEMENTS

The carriage pulled up in front of the white mansion, its wheels cutting through the slush left from the snow the night before. The footman jumped down from his perch and opened the carriage door so that the passenger could alight.

Light from the lanterns either side of the mansion's front steps briefly lit the carriage's interior. A flash of gold embroidery belied the carriage's plain exterior. The ornate embroidery was soon eclipsed, however, by the body of the exiting passenger.

For a moment the man simply stood in the driveway, ignoring the slush he stood in and the movement of the footman closing the door behind him. He let his eyes slowly rove the building before him, as if it would give some clue to the character of the man he had some to see.

The mansion was fairly modest by present standards but impressive nonetheless. The building formed a stout H, with the main building forming the crossbar nestled between the east and west wings. The entrance was the focal point of the building, jutting forth from the main body of the building. The two wings extended out to create a sheltered arc around it, partially enclosing the entry. A façade broken into five faces. The symbolism was not lost on the visitor.

The entire structure sat on a solid stone foundation that supported three stories. Nine clusters of diamond-paned windows stared out from the top two levels. The lower floor, interrupted by the entrance, had only five. Twenty three in total. Five and twenty-three. Both numbers of import for those who followed the ancient superstitions. Even so, their presence did not necessarily mean anything - traditions lingered in the country's architecture even if their practices were forgotten. Except for the peculiar choice of white stone and black roof tiles, it would have been normal, if stark, to normal eyes.

The only things that suggested that this building was something out of the ordinary were the strange additions that would be taken as mere decorations if one didn't know better.

On every corner of the building - on the edges of the tiled roof, the ledges of every window and the meeting of foundation and wall – clung a multitude of carved stone dragons. Their eyes were turned outward, their mouths baring teeth in open threat against any intruders. And while they could have been taken as excentric decoration - such things had been popular in the past, after all - the entrance suggested it was something more.

A pair of unicorns stood at the bottom of the steps, placed to either side. Their stony eyes seemed to gaze out and in at the same time as their horns were lowered, directed challengingly at whoever thought to ascend. The visitor instantly recognized the twin symbols of purity and protection. He noted that the mansion's owner had even gone to the trouble of placing the two beasts in the proper alignment to banish evil. The quality of the statues suggested that they had been commissioned and the man was willing to bet that they had been prepared in the traditional way, too.

His gaze moved to the stairs. There were nine. And carved into the front of each was a fierce serpent, its form winding sinuously across the rectangular slabs. Nine steps for a protective ward. Nine serpents to devour evil spirits which dared try to enter.

The protections were completed at the top of the stairs. Two crescent moons sat atop the stone posts that ended the stair rails. A third crescent sat embedded in the wood panelling of the front door. They formed a triangular arrangement that took in the entire space of the enclosed patio at the top of the steps. Even as he looked closer, more obscure designs became apparent in the decoration of the patio itself.

And above it all, centred in the space between the arch leading to the door and window on the third floor, was a large stone relief. It involved no unicorns, serpents or crescents. Instead it looked to be a strange stylized sun with its flares snaking out like flames, lightning and smoke. It took a while for the man to realize that some of the decorative carving was actually text.

It was the perhaps the strangest thing he had seen so far.

His eyes lifted to the window above the mysterious seal. He was willing to bet that it was master bedroom.

The visitor looked back at the dragons guarding the corners of the building. Now that he was looking for them, he could see that the symbols of the ward above the entrance were repeated in miniature underneath the dragons' claws. The entire building was one giant ward against evil spirits.

The revelation was reached with a sense of light satisfaction. As he had suspected, the building had indeed reflected what he had heard of the owner.

Lord Kimihiro, as he was known, was a cipher in polite society.

The late Lord Watanuki had suddenly moved back to the ancestral home some thirty years ago. No explanation for the family's absence was made and society was left to gossip about the possibilities. Despite the scandalous murmuring, the lord and lady had returned to society with barely a hiccup. They kept a low profile, never attending large gatherings and hosting modest get togethers in the ground of their own estate. Gradually, with no fuel to feed the fires, the gossip died down and the family's presence was merely seen as one more of society' eccentric staples.

However, nearly a decade after their return, a freak accident killed both lord and lady, leaving their son to inherit the estate.

Not much was known about the man. Even as a child he hadn't been seen often – popular opinion had been that he was abroad gaining a classical education. Unusual for one so young but for what other reason would he be so rarely seen? Even after the death of his parents, his excursions beyond the borders of his estate were rare and far between. And no one seemed to recall much about the young man other than he was quiet and polite.

That perception changed, however, after the lord attended a party held by Lady Kashi some seven years ago. The details of the incident were not certain, and clearly exaggerated from what was often told, but the lord had apparently had some sort of fit in the course of the evening. He had attended no gatherings after that and received no visitors. Illness was a stigma in society and the man had become somewhat of a social pariah.

Lord Kimihiro. It was strange that his first name was used when people referred to him. It was an insult to use a first name so. One was to be referred to by their bloodline not their personal name. But somehow the label had stuck to the man. In all the gossip he was never referred to with his proper title.

However, for a man like the visitor, common gossip was only part of the information that was available. More useful information was come by with patience and the right questions. And while it turned out that Lord Kimihiro had indeed not left his house often since that day, he was not without visitors. A steady trickle of people came to the mansion at odd hours. People with problems that required the services of man who was said to have unusual powers.

It was a similar problem that brought the man here this winter night.

If the situation hadn't been so serious, he would never have sought out the strange mansion and it's even stranger master. But he had exhausted other possibilities and, despite his scepticism, he was willing to take a chance.

"Milord?"

The man turned his gaze from the house and let it rest on the footman. Most of his servants knew not to intrude when their master was deep in thought. This man, however, was new to service and had not yet become familiar with his employer's ways. Likely he had thought that the lord was lost in thought and had forgotten his whereabouts.

The lord didn't really care what the footman thought but he agreed that it was time to enter. "Wait here." And with that curt instruction he moved to the front steps.

He studied the unicorns as he passed them, the stone eyes returning his stare. He passed unharmed between them and felt nothing as he ascended the stairs and their guardian serpents. Not even when he breached the ward of the three crescent moons did he feel the whisper of anything supernatural.

But he hadn't expected to. The lord did not truly believe that Lord Kimihiro was what the rumours claimed him to be. At best he would receive some intelligent advice, nothing mystical or magical in nature. In all his years as the Keeper of the Southern Ward, he had never even had a scent of the supernatural. And he did not believe that he would suddenly run into it now.

Such things were for the gullible and the desperate. He'd learnt that a long time ago.

There was another ornate decoration the door within the arc of the crescent. Another dragon, it's brass tongue hinged to use as a clapper. The lord studied it expressionlessly for a moment before lifting it to rap it on the door.

Despite the late hour, the door opened nearly instantly. A butler appeared in the opening of the door. Dark eyes stared out from underneath white-streaked black hair. "The master is asleep. Please leave your card-"

The man broke off as the lord roughly pushed past him and entered the foyer. He had taken a long time to research Lord Kimihiro and he was not going to be turned back now.

The foyer was somewhat like he had imagined from the building's exterior. It was a high open space that encompassed first and second floors. The ornate stairway leading to the second floor was the focal point, located directly in line with the entry. As he had half suspected from his scrutiny of the patio, the foyer was also decorated with arcane symbols. When he glanced down, he realized that the entire foyer floor was a ward, a large black design laid into the white marble.

"Sir." The butler had shut the door and followed his steps further into the foyer. "I must insist-"

"I'm here to see Lord Kimihiro." The lord's attention had turned to walls. It was less apparent that the exterior but the walls bore the same sigils and images as the patio. It was as if the foyer itself was made to house a series of large interlocking wards.

He was beginning to wonder if Lord Kimihiro's rumoured illness was one of the mind.

"Sir. The master is-"

"Hikideshi." A soft voice interrupted the butler's words.

The lord's gaze rose to the stairway landing. A slender figure in a deep blue robe stood there as if he had been there all along. One hand resting lightly on the banister, he stared down on the foyer.

Eyes matching the robe he wore met the gold eyes that stared up at him from below. "Go prepare some tea, Hikideshi. For his Highness to visit me at a late hour on such a night it must be important."

The butler nodded solemnly and left for his task, leaving the two men staring at each other.

Once the soft footfalls faded away, the prince was suddenly painfully aware of the starkness of his surrounding. The silence of the mansion, unbroken by the bustling of servants as was often the case at his own estate, seemed stifling. Even so he refused to break it.

Finally the silence was broken by Lord Kimihiro. "Shall we move to the study? This may take some time."

Prince Doumeki nodded. But even as he did so he beginning to wonder if anything he had heard about the man before him was true.

xXx

Lord Kimihiro had not bothered to change his robe. Instead of keeping his guest waiting he simply led the other man to the study as if he was perfectly at ease wearing a robe in front of a complete stranger.

For all Doumeki knew, maybe he was.

The prince kept his eyes surveying his surroundings as he was led deeper into the mansion. Though not as obvious as they had been on the patio and in the foyer, various protective charms were in evidence. They were in every room and there was always more than one. If it hadn't been for his upbringing as Keeper, Doumeki doubted that he would have noticed them at all. But the prince had been educated in the ancient traditions and superstitions of his country and was familiar with many of the archaic wards he saw. All were made for protection and defence.

It looked like the lord was afraid of spirits.

He let his gaze rest on the back of the man before him. Was he simply displaying what his customers expected of him, or did he really believe in the power of the wards that surrounded him? And, if it was the latter, was it simple superstition or something more sinister? He suspected he'd find out in the next few minutes.

After several minutes, Doumeki was finally led into the study. The room looked similar to the study he kept in the Southern Ward. However, instead of the desk he favoured, Lord Kimihiro simply had a low table and number of comfortable armchairs near the fireplace. And while the prince's study did have wards, a residue of ancient times, they were not nearly as intricate as the ones that ran along the walls.

Especially the one laced around the window. The prince shot his host a sharp look when he noticed the faint tracery carved into the windows' frames.

Lord Kimihiro simply smiled faintly at the look and gestured to an armchair while he knelt down next to the fireplace and stoked the slumbering coals. Doumeki was slightly surprized, even though he didn't show it. Most nobility would have sent for a servant to do the task and certainly wouldn't have lowered themselves by doing it in front of a guest. But Lord Kimihiro didn't seem concerned at the picture he made kneeling in a robe next to the growing fire.

It made his pale skin glow like porcelain-

"Well." Lord Kimihiro rose from the fireplace and took a seat opposite Doumeki across the low table. "What can I do for you?"

Doumeki simply stared at him. He'd half expected that the man would have pretended to know why he was there.

Lord Kimihiro seemed to get a bit irritated. "I'm not a mind reader. Nor am I a fortune teller." Dark blue eyes met gold. "If you want my help, you're going to have to tell me the nature of your problem."

Doumeki considered the situation. The gaze of those blue eyes meeting his own. The wards covering every surface of the mansion. The problem that brought him here in the first place.

"The Lord and Lady of Cotsgrove (1) believe that they have an angry spirit haunting their house. Recently their daughter, the Lady Himawari was injured."

Lord Kimihiro had paled slightly at the mention of the ancient estate. At the mention of injury he paled even further. "The Lady Himawari-"

A knock on the door interrupted whatever he was going to say. The door opened and the butler entered, carrying a tray. In short order, tea and an assortment of pastries were laid out. Doumeki took a pastry and popped it in his mouth. It was good and he took another.

"Master." The butler paused on his way out and handed something to the lord. Lord Kimihiro seemed to seize on the object with relief. Doumeki, pretending to be engrossed with his tea, caught a glimpse of the gold dragon etched into the silver watch before it disappeared into a robe pocket.

The door closed behind the butler. "Where has the spirit been spotted?" The blue eyes wandered onto the tray and Lord Kimihiro's brow wrinkled slightly when he saw how many pastries had been consumed.

The prince helped himself to another pastry. A faint light flared in the other man's eyes at the action and Doumeki suppressed a sudden urge to smirk. "It hasn't."

A blink. "Pardon?"

"It hasn't," he repeated. A bite of pastry.

Lord Kimihiro was looking a bit perplexed. "It hasn't what?"

Another bite. There was only a little bit left and he put it into his mouth as well. "Been spotted."

Another spark in those blue eyes. "Then how do they know there is a spirit in their house?" It sounded like the lord was beginning to loose his patience.

Doumeki took a sip of tea before answering. "Things keep dying." The lord looked shocked at that. "Rats. And then the scullery cat. Birds dying outside the window."

Lord Kimihiro was staring into his own cup. Doumeki took the opportunity to take another pastry but the other man didn't seem to be interested in his eating habits anymore.

"Killing creatures." The lord muttered to himself. His hand had slipped into the pocket of his robe but he didn't seem to notice. "And now the young lady." He looked up at Doumeki. "All centred around the same room?"

Doumeki nodded. "Lady Himawari fell off the landing near the door's entrance."

"And the servants were probably getting injured before that." Lord Kimihiro commented absently. "It wouldn't want anyone entering its territory."

Doumeki was watching the man carefully now. "It?"

Lord Kimihiro set his cup on the table and made a vague motion with his hand. The other remained in his pocket. "The spirit. They can get very possessive when they have existed for a long time." His voice grew thoughtful. "Though to start injuring people..."

There was silence for a moment. Only the crackling of the fire intruded.

"It has to be drawn out."

Doumeki raised an eyebrow at the statement. "Not banished?"

Calm blue eyes met his. "That would not be wise at this stage. It has already begun harming people." He didn't elaborate on that but continued talking. "It will have to be carried out by someone who has lived within wards for most of their life."

His eyes were on the prince for a moment, measuring. "As a Keeper, you would be suitable, your Highness."

Doumeki shifted slightly in his chair. They had been talking normally till now. It was the first time the lord had addressed him by his title since the foyer. It somehow made him uncomfortable.

"You'll need a vine." Lord Kimihiro seemed to have taken the idea that the prince would be involved to heart. "Any vine will do. Place the cut end into a wide mouthed vase filled with water and the other end inside the room. Leave it for over night and the sprit should be trapped."

Doumeki was sceptical. "And that's it?"

Lord Kimihiro seemed slightly amused. "It does seem simple once you know what to do." His expression sobered. "In the morning you should seal the vase and dispose of the vine. Burning would be best. Until you can bring it, the vases should be safe within the wards of the Southern Ward."

"Vases?"

Again, that blue stare. "I'll need both. The vase you sealed in the spirit in and the vase in the room."

xXx

Prince Doumeki had only been slightly surprized when he saw the vase in the room. The Lord and Lady of Cotsgrove had only been too happy for him to take it and he had ended up taking both vases back to the Southern Ward.

They had both sat in the central room of the Ward for nearly a week. The prince had looked in on them several times but they had only seemed like normal vases. Only when it seemed that the strange incidents had in indeed stopped, Doumeki set off to see Lord Kimihiro.

It was once again late at night when the carriage rolled to a stop outside the Watanuki mansion entrance. There was no snow this time though as the prince stepped out of the carriage. With only a cursory glance at his surroundings, Doumeki passed the two unicorns and crossed the nine serpents only to pause in the triangle of the crescents.

The door opened before he could use the dragon knocker. The butler who had answered before opened the door. His gaze on the two vases the prince held, he opened the door and ushered him inside.

Doumeki had only moved a few steps into the foyer when a voice stopped him.

"Place them in the centre of the ward, your Highness." Lord Kimihiro was once more on the landing. The only difference was that the robe was a bright scarlet instead of a deep blue.

The prince stared for a moment, considering how to take the request, before placing the two vases down where he had been asked.

"Now leave the ward." The voice was just as firm as it had been the first time. But there was an edge to it that he hadn't heard before. Doumeki glanced up at the man once more before he walked off the black pattern set in the floor.

Lord Kimihiro let out a shaky sigh and started down the staircase. The prince watched in some concern as the man made his unsteady descent. By the time he had reached ground level, his grip on the banister seemed to be the only thing that kept him upright.

The prince moved over and took the other man by the arm. "Are you ill?"

An expression of surprize flashed across the other man's face. His posture improved as he straightened slightly. "I shall be fine shortly."

Doumeki was doubtful and kept his grip. Through the silk of his robe, the prince could feel the shivers running through the other man's arm. It was clear that the man was unwell.

To his surprize, Lord Kimihiro did not object to the prolonged contact. Instead he simply reached his free hand into the pocket of his robe. Gold flashed in the light of the foyer and Doumeki recognized the dragon-embossed pocket watch.

Lord Kimihiro held the watch in an unsteady hand and said one word. "Ryuu."

The dragon on the watch began to glow. Then suddenly it was moving. It lifted from the metal in a long sinuous stretch that ended with it sitting on the watch, no longer a flat representation but a solid creature. The tiny dragon took a look at its surroundings then hopped off the watch and curled around the thumb of the hand holding the watch.

The prince eyed the little apparition warily. "What is it?"

The lord smiled fondly at the little creature. "A construct. Due to a strange quirk of my inheritance, I am unable to use my power directly in such matters."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed.

The lord moved his thumb to pat the little dragon's head. "Instead I must use an intermediary. Ryuu acts as a conduit for my power."

As if it had received a silent signal, the little dragon uncurled itself and flowed down to the floor. It glided across the floor and stepped onto the first point of the ward. As soon as the first small golden leg touched the black marble, it's glow increased. It paused for a moment then moved to the next point. After it moved on, the point glowed softly with gold light.

The process was repeated until all nine points were glowing. Lord Kimihiro had grown progressively pale throughout the process. Doumeki, who had directed his attention to the lord rather than the dragon lighting up the ward on the floor, nearly missed what happened next. The sudden bright flash that engulfed the foyer, however, had him turning back to the vases.

They were barely visible in the threads of gold smoke that swirled up around them. Obscured by the flexing ropes of gold, they looked faded, as if they were growing less tangible. Even as he watched, they wavered and were suddenly gone.

But as the gold threads died back it became evident that, while the vases were gone, the ward was not empty.

A purple butterfly lifted from the floor and fluttered over to the lord and prince. It's flight was slightly erratic and as it grew closer, Doumeki realized that it was made of paper.

A woman's voice suddenly filled the foyer. "Timely as always, Kimihiro. I expect the next payment soon."

Message delivered, the butterfly fell to the floor, now only a folded piece of purple paper.

The dragon, which had retreated to the side of the room, suddenly returned to its master's hand. With a flex of its little leg, it returned to the watch and settled down on its surface. After a brief gold glow, it was once again only a gold inset on the silver pocket watch's surface.

Doumeki looked from the folded butterfly to the watch. Magic. That was the only word for it. His eyes turned to the man who had performed the feat. With the vases and dragon gone, he was looking much like he always was. Too pale but otherwise well. The prince wondered if he did such thing often and whether they always had such a cost.

"Your Highness." The lord was staring at him with those dark blue eyes.

Doumeki realized that he still held the other man's arm. The grip had tightened without him realizing it. He let go as if the silk under his hand had burned him.

Lord Kimihiro addressed the butler. "Hikideshi. Tea in the study." He turned back to the prince. "I suppose you expect some answers."

A person with any shred of common sense should have been running out the door by now. But instead he nodded and was shortly afterwards following the lord to his study to have some tea. No doubt to hear about things that a prince, no matter his position as Keeper of the Southern Ward, shouldn't know about. No doubt his mother would be shocked when she found out.

But the possibility of facing the queen's wrath didn't bother him. He found that he was getting increasingly intrigued by the pale slender man. And not much could capture his interest these days.

Besides, the pastries were good.

xXx

1) English-sounding and intentionally so. I'm toying with a history that includes two peoples living in the one land. That's why there are Japanese and, later, European names.

Not as funny? Just wait until Masqued Intentions. Kimihiro takes a while to loosen up :)


	2. Twisted Gold I

AN: The second of the five oneshots (no they're not finished yet) I've decided to shove together under the one title. They turned out to be a bit more connected that I thought.

Supernatural Entanglements:

Twisted Gold

I

Wide glass doors revealed a verdant landscape of moss, manicured pines and large boulders that displayed an astonishing array of shades. The purpose of the view was to soothe, to create a tranquillity of mind that would enable the quick and efficient execution of duties. And if that failed, the covered walkway beyond the doors provided a temporary escape - a route to absorb the peace and relaxation that the carefully constructed landscape provided.

However, the enticing lure was lost on the man who sat at the large desk that faced slightly away from the view. Dressed in the simple kimono that he always wore in his home, the man looked like he was more suited to the traditional landscape outside rather than the room in which he sat. It was furnished in the current style - aside from the desk there a number of armchairs, a brick fireplace one corner, bookshelves lining the walls and glass cabinets crouched against the wall either side of the door leading to the rest of the building.

But the man had no attention to spare for the incongruity he presented nor would likely care if someone pointed it out to him. He was absorbed with the situation at hand.

Prince Doumeki found himself in the position of rethinking his world.

Ever since delivering the two vases to the reclusive Lord Kimihiro, he had begun to see the supernatural world that had been hidden from his eyes until now. It wasn't that he could suddenly see spirits or anything as drastic as that. But now he was aware of such forces and had witnessed them with his own eyes, Doumeki found himself seeing traces of their existence in matters he attended to everyday.

Doumeki ran a finger down the length of the arrow lying on his desk. The smooth wood soon gave way to jagged splinters. He frowned down at the paler wood, exposed by the savage break that ended the shaft abruptly.

It also cast an interesting light on certain events of the past.

As Keeper of the Southern Ward, Doumeki had a number of duties. The Ward had traditionally been a ward against the dead. As the lesser wards around the city served the general population, the Southern Ward dealt with the preparations of the bodies those most closely linked with the second world (1) and the rich, those who could afford the extensive spiritual preparation. While it still served this purpose, the spiritual element had been mostly forgotten - it was now no longer fashionable to indulge in old traditions and pay for the full purification rites. And those who were spiritually inclined (by blood or conscious choice) tended to keep a low profile in this modern age. As for the bodies of those who had been cursed or suffered from supernatural malaise; their presence was ignored, a responsibility of the Southern Ward which was not believed but carried out as tradition.

Aside from the rituals of prayer and meditation, most of Doumeki's duties were more worldly. While protection of the city was still a priority, it was simply against more physical harm. Just as most wardens now doubled their spiritual duties with law enforcement, as Keeper of the Southern Ward, the prince was responsible for the southern division of the city's wardens and received daily reports about the problems affecting the city directly. He had also taken it upon himself to take his information gathering one step further, thus the wide-flung information network he had accessed to gain information about Lord Kimihiro. Doumeki was nothing if not thorough.

Yet despite the shift in duties over time, Doumeki found that some still came to see him in his position's regular function. Despite the shift in public opinion, there were still a small group of people who still believed firmly in the old ways. And due to his predecessor's commitment to tradition, the Southern Ward was patronized by most of them.

Doumeki attended them as he had been taught. Most problems had been satisfied with a simple answer - blessings, charms, prayers and simple advice usually sufficed. However, since his late-night conversation with Lord Kimihiro the week before, Doumeki had seen an increase in patrons arriving with problems that had a disturbing supernatural bent. He had already referred two to Lord Kimihiro, not certain whether the wardens in his jurisdiction could properly attend the problem.

He knew that at least one of the matters had been solved. Lady Siward's effusive thanks had told him as much even if his informants had failed him. However, without visiting the lord himself he couldn't enquire about the price he had payed to fix the problem. And the prince had been brooding over on it over the last four days when he should have been otherwise occupied.

Doumeki's eyes fell on the broken white-fletched arrow that lay on his desk.

He'd been thinking on what he'd heard that night quite a bit since then. It had sparked a renewal of beliefs that had been shattered by loss and suppressed by everything that had happened since. He now knew that his belief was not unfounded. That he had been right to trust and had never been betrayed. But to have a confirmation after so long only generated more questions. They seethed in his mind like snakes and, while he'd been postponing the matter, he knew that he'd soon have to seek out answers to it all.

Lord Kimihiro clearly hadn't told him enough yet.

xXx

Doumeki was led back into the same study he'd seen on his first visit. Lord Kimihiro led the way as if the last fifteen minutes had never happened, a slight stumble in the corridor the only clue to the cost his previous display of power must have taken.

The fire was burning steadily in the hearth when the lord opened the door and ushered the prince inside. Doumeki crossed the room and sat down in the armchair he had used last time without waiting for an invitation. Not that Lord Watanuki seemed to mind his breach of manners. He was preoccupied with his own seating. The short walk must have tired him, for he now revealed an unsteadiness that hadn't been apparent. He gripped the arms of his chair and slowly lowered himself, like an old man carefully setting his aching joints, instead of simply sitting.

Doumeki filed the observation away as something else he needed to ask about.

They had barely settled when Hikideshi arrived. The butler carried a tea tray and efficiently swept into the room, the tray perfectly balanced on one hand, stopping by the table that lay between the two men and beginning to lay down its contents. The lord watched, a hint of tiredness in his eyes, as a teacup was set in front of the prince and then on the table before him. This time he let the butler pour instead of taking over as he had before.

Doumeki noted that it was the same delicate porcelain used during his previous visit. It had the fine translucent quality of an heirloom piece - modern workmanship was mass produced not handmade like he suspected this would have been. Delicate cherry blossoms had been painted on the white surface with the care that could only be performed by a master. No doubt the lord was honouring his guest by using a priceless set that would normally be kept in storage.

A matching tray piled with pastries had also been placed on the table. After a small gesture from the lord, the butler had placed it within arm's reach of his guest. Taking advantage of the proximity, Doumeki helped himself to one of the offerings, pretending not to have seen the restorative the butler had slipped into his lord's teacup.

Lord Kimihiro, staring into the fire, hadn't even noticed. And soon the powered herbs had been dissolved in the hot tea that the butler had poured before bowing and taking his leave. Doumeki eyed his retreating form thoughtfully as he took a bite from the pastry.

It was excellent. The prince made a note to enquire which baker the lord patroned. It tasted better than anything that was currently served in his household.

He waited for several moments for the lord to speak. But the man seemed to have fallen into a trance as he watched the dancing flames in the grate.

"Oi!"

The lord jerked at the noise, and looked up startled at the impersonal address. His lips pressed together in automatic disapproval before Doumeki's words reminded him of why he was present.

"You were going to explain?" The prince's voice was bland as if he didn't care one way or the other.

The annoyance disappeared from Lord Kimihiro's face to be replaced by an expression of slight embarrassment. He picked up his teacup, slender fingers wrapping around the vessel in flawless familiarity. "Are you aware of the basic principles of the four Wards?"

Doumeki picked up another pastry and looked at closely before replying. "The four Wards were established during the foundation of the capital. Each was used to ward off various threats. Pestilence to the North, War to the West, Famine to the East and Death to the South (2)." He had taken a bite and his last sentence came out muffled through a mouthful of flaked pastry. "As long as the wards held, the city was though to be unassailable against all threats."

Lord Kimihiro almost managed to conceal his distaste at the unmannerly display. A frown creasing his brow, he surveyed the pastries that still survived the prince's depredations. He noticed the other man's gaze and attempted to hide the lapse in a sip of tea. Apparently the butler knew his craft well - Lord Kimihiro didn't seem to sense anything amiss.

The cup returned to its saucer. "The capital also represents the empire as a whole. In warding the city, the empire was also warded. That's why corresponding wards were built at the borders at each of the four directions. The city became a representation of the empire itself. It's warding was that warding of the entire empire." Another sip of tea and the delicate cup descended once more.

"However, with the shift of public sentiment in the past few centuries," Lord Kimihiro avoided any outright mention of the royal line to which his guest belonged, "the traditional use of the Wards has declined and focused on materialistic endeavours." He paused and frowned down at his cup, picking it up and peering down at its contents. "Several family lines," he began, voice slightly distracted, "associated with the four Wards also served as secondary wards. Support for each of the Wards in their task to defend against malevolent entities of the second world. Even as each Ward had its own threat to defend against, the supporting lines would act as they could to ensure that the Wards were protected."

Lord Kimihiro took another drink from his cup. This time he seemed to concentrate on the taste of the brew. Apparently not all the herbs had been dissolved for he set the cup down with a soundless sigh and an exasperated glance at the door Hikideshi had left through. "As the Wards began to shift their focus, the supporting lines found that they also had to change their roles. Many found themselves acting in the roles that the Wards themselves had served to a lesser degree. They started dealing with the problems that were usually left to wardens, some even going as far to turn their estates into secondary wards to boost the Wards protecting the city."

Doumeki had stopped eating some time back. He turned a fragment of pastry between his fingers, scattering random flakes across the table. "And the Watanuki estate is one of these. Supporting the Southern Ward." He still had the feeling that he hadn't heard everything yet.

His host had turned his attention from his teacup to the spread of pastry flakes which was slowly covering the prince's side of the table. There must have been some calming agent in the herb his butler had dosed him with for the lord was seemed resigned rather than angry. He smiled wanly at the prince. "My bloodline has always been associated with spirits." His eyes darkened. "Among other things."

Despite running on for quite some time, not much else was revealed during the rest of the conversation. Doumeki was left with the feeling that he was missing huge pieces of information. What was clear, however, was that that spirits and the second world, which he had been told emphatically did /not/ exist, were all too real.

xXx

1) The afterworld. The world of spirits overlapping the world of the living. You know what I mean :)

2) Familiar? Don't worry, there is actually practical reasoning for each of these associations. They are all connected to the capital's locations and the environmental phenomenon of the world around it. You'll also get a look at all of the wards eventually.

xXx


	3. Twisted Gold II

Supernatural Entanglements:

Twisted Gold

II

Doumeki brushed the white fletching of the arrow he held. Apparently his grandfather had been right. There was more than could be seen with the eyes.

The thought made him angry and he set the arrow down precisely on the desk before he could snap the fragile shaft. He was going to have to do some digging to find out exactly what had happened twenty years ago.

He could still remember the day clearly. And all that followed from it.

"Riku."

The study door opened almost immediately as if the man had been waiting for the summons. He probably had.

The aide bowed in the doorway. "Your Highness?"

"I want you to look into the death of the previous Keeper of the Second Ward." Doumeki paused, taking in the slight widening of the other man's eyes. "Discretely. I want everything - official and unofficial."

"Yes, Your Highness." Another bow. And back to business as if the previous request didn't skate dangerously close to treason. "Lady Amita is here to see you. I tried to inform her that you were otherwise occupied but the lady was" a discrete hesitation "insistent."

Doumeki was somewhat surprised at the news. He had thought that the matter had already been dealt with. He hadn't expected to see the lady return to the Southern Ward again. Her unease with the place was only surpassed by her desperation.

"I settled her in the courtyard teahouse." Riku correctly read the prince's silent inquiry. "I thought that the courtyard would" another slight pause "ease her somewhat."

So the lady was more distressed than she had been on her first visit. Doumeki pushed back his chair. "Have some tea sent out." If he was lucky the sight of a tea set might remind her of the social reserve she was meant to possess.

xXx

The Southern Ward, like the other cardinal wards, had a different layout than the other shrines found within the bounds of the empire. All four Wards had three expanding enclosures around the central shrine that served as an indivisible set of defences aganst malevolent entities of the second world. Each of these enclosures acted as wards that protected the structures that lay within them and linked together to create three interlocking major wards that culminated in the central enclosure, housing the most sacred area of the Ward. Each of the four Wards, however, housed a different a different number of structures and minor wards, dictated by their main functions.

The Southern Ward was the most extensively warded of the four. Unlike the other three cardinal Wards, which had a constant flow of people through the gates for weapons training, healing or fertility charms, the Southern Ward was mostly closed off from the public. The people of the city were allowed access within the first boundary alone. There they could visit the number of small shrines that served as remembrances to the dead and allowed worship of the local deities that connected the shrine to the city. A smaller area was also set aside for the ever-expanding graveyard.

The second boundary enclosed the area where much of the Ward's main functions were carried out. Here were the sanctified shrines where the bodies of the dead were prepared for cremation and their safe guidance into the second world. It was also the area where most of the priests and priestesses dwelt. A small self-sufficient community including craftsmen and stables had also grown over the centuries.

The third enclosure was traditionally restricted to the Keeper of the Ward and his immediate household. Originally it had only held the central shrine and the sacred landscape that was the focus of the shrine. Later, though, the Keeper's dwelling had been built within the walls as part of a minor ward that coexisted within the boundaries of the third major ward. As time passed the structure grew until it became the sprawling complex that now rested in the southern third of the central enclosure. It was here that the Keeper could receive important guests but still guard the avenue that lead to the central shrine. While more people had been allowed within the central enclosure, they were forbidden access to the shrine itself. Only the Keeper was allowed that honour.

It was in the tea house that lay nestled in the courtyard garden attached to the main house that the prince now ventured. he followed his predecessor's example by receiving visitors here where the shrine was still shielded from their presence by the bulk of the Keeper's dwelling.

The teahouse was a simple structure that was a comfortable mixture of traditional and mordern aesthetics. It was still a place where tea was served while one could quietly contemplate the lush surroundings. However, the layout had changed to suit the times. It was basically a small open area with a table and chairs and sliding doors that could be opened to afford a wide vista of the surrounding garden. And the change was not only the presence of furniture. The second room for the preparation of tea had been removed. Tea was not made on the premises and certainly not by one's host. In this era such work was left to servants. It was no longer fashionable for one's host to humble themselves before their guests.

The prince strolled through the garden which would have calmed him at any other time, and paused outside the teahouse. He could his guest sitting nervously inside.

Lady Amita had changed remarkably over the last few years. Doumeki could remember her visits to the Southern Ward in his youth. At the time he had gotten the impression of a plump cheerful woman who had folded bright origami pieces and laughed with his grandfather. But the passage of years had not been kind to her. She had lost weight to the point where she was unhealthily thin. Her face was sallow, the cheekbones stark in her sunken face, and her thin fingers reminded the prince of chickens' feet. She still retained the dark hair and eyes which had once made her one of the court's beauties, but that only made her deterioration more marked.

The most startling change of all was her personality. Gone were the carefree smiles and cheerful laughter. All that was left were thin trembling lips and dark fearful eyes. Age had caught up with the lady, it seemed, in the form of a fearful paranoia that hinted at early dementia.

But none of the prince's reservations stemmed from any of this. Instead it was the lady herself who seemed so disagreeable rather than the disturbing eccentricies that she displayed. It was an uneasy creeping sensation that made any extended contact with the woman an unappealing prospect.

To put it simply, she was one of the few people that the prince actually felt uncomfortable around just by being in her presence.

Doumeki rapped politely on the side of the door and entered the teahouse.

"Prince Doumeki!" With a rustle of skirts Lady Amita surged to her feet and moved forward to grasp his arm.

Doumeki was hard pressed not to shake her off. He didn't appreciate the liberties she was taking. But the woman was highly strung and any rebuff would likely send her into hysterics. Doumeki led her back to her seat and saw her properly seated, a pretext to pry off the vulture-grip she had on his arm.

"Lady Amita." He retreated to his own chair behind the protection of the table before she could latch onto him again. "I didn't expect to see you so soon." Or ever again, for that matter.

"Oh, Your Highness! It's just so terrible!" Her fingers did their best to strangle themselves where they rested on the table. "It keeps happening. Just yesterday-"

Doumeki cut in before she could go any further. "Did you visit Lord Kimihiro?"

The lady's dark eyes widened. "Oh, I couldn't!" A hint of hysteria laced her words. "I know it was at your recommendation but I just couldn't!" Her fingers clamped down hard on each other. "There were spirits crawling all over the estate! I don't know how he could live there!"

Her eyes darted round the courtyard, visible through the open doorway of the teahouse. "It was hard enough to come here." She shuddered visibly.

Doumeki decided to ignore the insulting suggestion that the Ward under his supervision was infested by malevolent spirits. "And the wardens?"

Lady Amita reared back from the table. Her hands unravelled and rose to cover her face. Jagged sobs leaked through her fingers leaving the prince to surmise that the meeting with the wardens hadn't proceeded any better.

Doumeki pushed a napkin that Riku had undoubtedly left for such a purpose across the table and began to pray that the tea would come soon.

As if the thought had summoned him, Riku appeared at the edge of the courtyard, bearing a tray laden with a tea service. It was obvious that that the aide was concerned at the situation by the fact that he had come himself rather than sending out one of the servants. He saw that that Doumeki was staring in his direction and hastened his pace, correctly inferring that an interruption would be appreciated.

A deliberate rattle of porcelain startled the lady from her distress. Dark eyes darted to the source of the noise and a hand hastily descended to claim the napkin that lay on the table before her. With hasty motions she began dabbing at her eyes, clearing the tears from her face. By the time Riku had actually entered the teahouse, Lady Amita had drawn a semblance of calm on her features that was only belied by her reddened eyes and the trembles that ran through the fingers clenched in the napkin.

Riku made no sign that he noticed the lingering traces of tears. After bowing to the two nobles seated at the table, he began to lay out the utensils lined up on the tray he bore. The familiar ritual of serving tea seemed to further calm the lady. By the time Riku was finished and the lady had a cup cradled in one hand, it was as if the previous episode had never occurred.

Doumeki still eyed her somewhat warily as Riku poured tea into his own cup. He couldn't help but wonder how long the reprieve would last once his aide had left and there was no other witnesses.

Riku didn't leave once the tea was served, though. Instead he bent down to whisper a message in the prince's ear. "A Lord Kimihiro to see you, Your Highness."

The use of the honorific only stressed the informality of the visitor's title. Either Riku didn't approve or he was subtly reminding his lord of the possible ramifications of this visit.

Considering his usual outlook to the unusual visitors that the prince received, it was more likely the latter.

Doumeki nodded to indicate he'd received the message, a mixture of relief and strange excitement flooding through him. "Ask the lord to wait in the study."

Riku bowed and left, leaving Doumeki alone once more with Lady Amita.

But not for long.

"Lady Amita."

The woman looked up from the tea she had been served, its presence having calmed her quite a bit. "Yes, Your Highness?"

"I'm afraid another matter has arisen and I must attend to it immediately." He was rising from the table as he spoke, forcing the lady to follow suit in a flurry of porcelain, napkins and lace. "Please enjoy the garden in my absence. I shall return shortly."

"Of course." Though clearly it wasn't to her liking, once recalled, the lady's manners allowed her no other response. She dropped into a curtsey as the prince took his leave.

As he made his way back to the Ward, the prince reflected on the difference a tea service had made. It was rather startling to see the transformation the props of polite society made upon a person.

xXx


	4. Twisted Gold III

Supernatural Entanglements:

Twisted Gold

III

When Doumeki entered his study he suddenly realized that he should have made the meeting in a more neutral location.

As the door opened, the lord turned to face him, ungloved fingers leaving the white fletching of the arrow that still lay on the desk. There was a flicker of something that passed through his eyes for a moment but just as soon as it appeared, it was gone.

"Lord Kimihiro." The man was no longer wearing the robes Doumeki has seen him in but attire suitable to visiting fellow nobility. The white shirt was crisp and absolutely spotless where it showed under the tailored black jacket with its small embroidery of dark blue dragons at collar and cuffs. If the cut was slightly unusual, though, the slightly widening of sleeves at the cuff, the high collar and length could be dismissed as an experimental fashion. Dark trousers flowed from under the edge of the jacket where it fell to mid thigh, an uninterrupted flow of fabric that ended to show a highly polished pair of black boots. The only flaw in his appearance was the missing white glove of his right hand. But even that was being remedied as the lord drew the glove back on in one smooth, well-practised motion.

The whole assemblage made his appearance odd, somehow. It was as if the man was suddenly an entirely different person. Only the elegant cane with its ward-engraved ends and the silver chain of the silver watch in his pocket were reminders of the man the prince had previously met. That and the abnormally pale skin and the shadows under his eyes.

It gave him a slightly fragile appearance and the prince wondered whether the man had recovered entirely from the events of last week.

The lord bowed, the depth measured precisely to the status of his host. "Your pardon, Your Highness. Please forgive my intrusion."

"I was under the impression you didn't make house calls." He hadn't seen any stable house or signs of horses that would indicate the possession of a carriage. Nor anyone who could have driven such a vehicle. Not that he'd seen anyone at the Watanuki mansion aside from the lord and his butler.

A slight smile. "I have an arrangement with my tenants to provide their services in any transportation I might need." A shielding of dark blue eyes with half lowered lids. "And I found that today's business was too urgent to deal with by proxy."

Out of his own estate, the lord was all propriety and polite blandness. It was as if a mask of civility had replaced every trace of his personality. Doumeki took an instant dislike to the display.

The prince studied the pale visage and the vague pleasant eyes shuttering all emotions and made a decision. He walked over to his desk, and shoving several papers aside, sat on the edge of it, disregarding how the action caused his kimono to ride up his legs slightly.

His visitor had turned to follow his action and he had the satisfaction of seeing a faint frown crease the lord's brow momentarily at the inelegant display.

Doumeki retrieved the arrow from the desk and held it carefully in the palm of his hands, the broken end scratching one palm, the fletching brushing the other. He pinned the lord with a golden gaze. "Does it have anything to do with this?"

Lord Kimihiro eyes had been on the arrow as it lay in the prince's hands. At the question, though, his eyes flickered up to meet the other man's. His gaze looked haunted for a moment before clearing. "No. I came because of something else." He turned to look out the glass doors, one gloved hand reaching for silver watch in his pocket.

His actions had jolted the other man out of his pretence but Doumeki couldn't say that his victory cheered him. He placed the arrow back onto the desk, his movements careful to mask the growing anger he was starting to feel.

"Then why did you come?" It came out blunter and more hostile than he had intended. Something he regretted as the lord's shoulders hunched momentarily.

"You have another guest this morning." He kept his back to the prince, so Doumeki couldn't say what expression he wore.

"Lady Amita." It seemed that the lord's presence was clear now. He had come to see the client who hadn't met her appointment. It was obligation to duty, nothing more. "She didn't come to see you."

"I know of the lady's difficulty. Have known of it for quite some time." The lord finally turned around to face the prince. "Did you notice the brooch she wore?"

Doumeki remembered it now that it had been mentioned. A small dark stone sitting in a gold setting. Two arms of an elongated oval stretched out to either side, framing mirroring crests laid out in gold relief.

Kimihiro nodded as he read the prince's stillness as recognition. "It twists the lady's perceptions." He smiled at the prince's surprized look. "She was gifted with sight once - if she hadn't she wouldn't have been effect this way. The lady keeps claiming that the wards are crawling with spirits, doesn't she?"

Doumeki recalled the complaint about the Ward and her reaction at his query about the wardens. Not to mention the lord that stood before him now.

"The lady must have been wearing the brooch for years. Normally it would not cause such a problem. One with sight should have recognized it as what it was and disposed of it properly immediately." He glanced over to see if the prince was paying complete attention before continuing. "But the process was accelerated when she first received it. It must mean that someone deliberately gave it to her."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed and he sat up straighter on the edge of the desk. "Are you saying that someone purposefully wanted to twist her sight?"

The lord's slim gloved fingers idly traced the ward of the cane he carried. "The lady was once as well respected as a warden in regards to the old ways. The matter recently came to my attention because the advice she was giving" a slight pause "was no longer sound."

Doumeki wondered what had gone so drastically wrong to pry the reclusive lord from his heavily warded mansion. "What do you intend to do?"

Lord Kimihiro's lips thinned. "What I must."

Doumeki took in the set expression, the tightened grip on the silver-headed cane. He slid off the edge of the desk. "The lady's taking tea in the garden."

xXx

Doumeki was glad of the precautions he had made when he took Riku aside before he escourted Lord Kimihiro out into the courtyard. Otherwise the scene could have been embarrassing for all.

The lady let out a loud scream as soon as she laid eyes on the person accompanying the prince back to the teahouse. Saucers and teacups shattered on the floor and the silver spoons fell with in a metallic rain as she suddenly rose, the movement tipping the table over.

Lord Kimihiro winced at the destruction (or was it the continuing scream? - Doumeki was inclined to think the former) but only continued forward determinedly.

The lady had pressed herself back into a corner, her exit blocked by the lord's figure in the doorway. "Go away!" The words were choked out between loud sobs of terror. Her dark eyes were wide and her mouth trembled in a widening oval that mirrored her gold brooch. Her fingers scrabbled at the piece, pulling it free.

The lord suddenly stopped several feet away.

Trembling fingers held the brooch with prongs of manicured nails. The lady shielded her face and held the piece at the end of her arm as if it would shield her from some unseen presence.

Kimihiro took another step.

The lady threw the brooch at him in an act of desperation.

As soon as the brooch left her grasp, the woman's eyes rolled back into her head and she collapsed, her fall halted by Doumeki's dart forward to catch her.

Lord Kimihiro had ignored her, however, in favour of the brooch. He had twisted out of its path when it had been thrown and now cautiously approached the piece of gold jewellry. The blue embroidery running round his cuffs flashed as he retrieved something from his right sleeve. There was flash of silver as he suddenly knelt, bringing the object hard down on the dark stone set in brooch.

With a small cracking sound, gem shattered under the force. Almost immediately the lord recoiled, silver instrument flying from his hand as he stumbled back to his feet coughing and choking.

Doumeki, having lowered the lady to the floor and settled her more comfortably in the corner, her back resting against the wall, got up. Keeping an eye on the lord's recovery from his choking fit, he walked over to the discarded silver implement and bent to pick it up.

It was a small cylinder of silver as long as the breadth of his hand. One end was capped with a dome of metal and the other supported a wickedly curved point.

Doumeki examined the small silver utensil more closely. It was a snail pick. He raised an eyebrow.

Lord Kimihiro flushed and practically snatched it back. Once again it disappeared into the widened sleeve of his long jacket, blue dragons briefly highlighted against black.

Doumeki bent and picked up the brooch. There was only a plain flat oval of gold remaining to tell where the gem had once sat. "The gem?"

"Not the original, I suspect." Kimihiro was surveying the mess that had been made of the once-immaculate tea house. "You should either get a warden to handle the pieces or deal with it yourself. It would not be wise to let anyone else touch them." His eye finally fell on the lady.

Doumeki followed his gaze. The brooch was a light weight in his hand. "What should be done with the brooch?"

The lord suddenly looked tired. "Give it back to her. It's just gold now." His gaze flickered to the object in question. "Hopefully the lady will recover."

But he didn't sound like he believed his words.

xXx

Leaving Riku to arrange for the lady's care, Doumeki escourted Lord Kimihiro out to wait for his carriage.

"Exactly how many incidents like this have happened?"

Dark blue eyes met gold briefly before darting out at the drive. The wards only extended to the end of the steps and the lord was waiting at the portico situated at their top. "More than I would like."

Doumeki didn't like it. He didn't like the possibility of someone picking off the people in his city one by one. He didn't like that he hadn't known about it until now. And most of all he didn't like the fact that it seemed Lord Kimihiro was the only one who was doing anything about it. Alone.

An ancient black carriage, glinting gold and silver from strange places, approached, wheels cutting through the gravel of the drive. As it drew closer, the prince realized that a thin scrolling of gold and silver leaf that had been laid in the wood sides of the carriage. The elegant designs were wards. Wards that ran around the windows and along the radius of the nine spoked wheels. Even the leather harness was ornamented with small silver ornaments that formed warding symbols. Across the door of the carriage cabin there was also a major ward that activated every time the door was shut and the lines flowing across the door rejoined the mirroring tracery on the carriage's side.

It was a moving equivalent of the lord's mansion - a portable ward created to deflect malevolent spirits of the highest level.

Doumeki turned to see Lord Kimihiro watch the warded carriage as it drew closer. Only when it had nearly reached the bottom of the steps did the lord leave the added protection of the portico. Doumeki silently watched him descend the stairs, uncertain whether he wanted him to stay or leave.

A thought suddenly rose in his mind. "What do you know about the arrow?"

The Lord hesitated on the last step. "Watch yourself, Your Highness."

And then the carriage was pulling up and, it's door opening at the hand of a footman. The lord quickly climbed inside and the door shut behind him, the ward on the door completed once more. The footman resumed his perch and the driver flicked the reins, setting the pair of bays forward at a quick pace. Their ward-traced harness winked in the light against their dark coats as they surged forward into a quick trot.

Doumeki watched the ancient carriage quickly retreated down the drive that led to the gate of the second enclosure. When it was finally lost from view, he uncrossed his arms and returned to the solid presence of the Ward.

He had work to do.

xXx

AN: You all want to know about the arrow don't you? Well it will show up frequently in throughout the following one shots (don't even think the 'c' word). It's to do with Prince Doumeki's past and several questions he's going to be seeking the answers to - a search that will carry on in the background for a while.

So you're going to have to wait and see :)


	5. Insubstantial Dreams I

Supernatural Entanglements:

Insubstantial Dreams

I

**It was dark. The only illumination came from the lanterns set along the garden path. A breeze rose and flowed past him, pale pink flakes swirling in the current. He lifted a hand and caught one in his hand.**

**Petals.**

**He turned to face the direction of the wind. It came from further up the slope that overlooked the pond. The sight that met his eyes made him stop in his tracks.**

**It was winter but there were blossoms on the cherry trees. A pale sprinkling of pink petals coated the snow.**

**And beneath the ancient weeping cherry at the top of the slope there was someone who didn't belong in this landscape.**

**Doumeki approached the figure seated on the stone bench set beneath the weeping branches. "You're not meant to be here."**

**The man's head turned enough to show his calm smile. "This is my garden." He seemed amused rather than offended that the younger man was adverse to his presence. A single petal drifted down and landed on the shoulder of his kimono.**

**Doumeki's eyes narrowed into slits of suspicious gold. "You're dead." It came out flatly with no room for compromise. His eyes moved around the garden as if to search out an exit.**

**Haruka's smile widened. "You've grown." He ignored his grandson's wary posture and took in the younger man's appearance. "Too serious, but I suppose Yamoto's responsible for that." He nodded at the confirmation as the gold eyes shot back to him.**

**"You took on the Southern Ward." Haruka leaned back slightly, forearms resting on his thighs. "And I see that you've now begun to realize what that means."**

**There was a short silence as the older man stared out over the pond, watching the ripples caused by the petals falling on its surface.**

**"The water is deceptive." He said finally. "All reactions and reflections. You would never know that it has it's own intentions, hidden deep below the surface."**

Doumeki opened his eyes. There was a faint crack line running through the ceiling mural, the branching darkness cutting through the pale face of a young maiden.

The prince turned his head to the side and stared outside his bedroom window. In the light of moon and lanterns he could see that the spreading branches were bare of leaves and blossoms both.

The view was of an ancient weeping cherry tree - his grandfather's favourite spot in the garden. Doumeki would often find him sitting on the stone bench when he came to visit in those early days of carefree ignorance.

He rolled his head back and closed his eyes to block out the mural he'd rather paint over but heritage prevented.

Another dream.

It was a long time before he managed to fall back to sleep.

xXx

After a night of broken sleep plagued by images of pink petals falling onto water, Doumeki was feeling somewhat ill-used. Even so, after a half-hearted attempt at breakfast, he settled down to the paperwork that awaited him in his study.

Riku eyed him with some concern - a half-finished breakfast was not usual for his master - as he set the papers on the desk. "Yesterday's warden reports for the Southern Ward." A large stack was placed on the polished wooden surface before him. "Lord Woodrow's summary." Faint disapproval as a thin missive was laid down. "Petitions for reinstatement of the festival." A modest bundle of papers.

It was all managed briskly and efficiency. Riku attacked the management of the Southern Ward and the Southern Quarter as he would have any other task. And from the dedication he showed, there was no sign of any disappointment over the downgrade in duties that accompanied his master's shift in station. Since Doumeki's instatement as Keeper, the paperwork had decreased as his royal duties were set aside.

With his brother firmly ensconced in the position of crown prince, Doumeki had no further need to attend the rounds of social gatherings that had been inflicted on him when he was younger.

Doumeki eyed the slim pile of papers the aide still held. "And those?"

Riku set them down carefully on the desk, atop the papers he had already laid on the polished wood. "The report you asked for, Your Highness." His eyes were downcast. "The other will take a little longer."

The simple typeset looked ominous against the blank field it lay on. "Thank you, Riku."

The aide bowed and left, though it was clear that he was uneasy with the situation. Not from any consequences he faced from accessing the material the prince asked for. Rather the reasons why his master was asking for them in the first place.

Doumeki suspected a tray from the kitchens would be sent to the study soon.

After his aide departed, the prince turned his attention the report. It didn't take long to determine it's contents. He'd read the report many times over the years and he'd practically memorized the contents. But he was looking at the information with new eyes now and the unanswered questions continued to build in number as he found hole after hole.

_Died of natural causes within the bounds of the Southern Ward_.

Doumeki glanced at the white fletched arrow that now rested on his desk.

Half of the story was missing. And he now knew that most of the details were wrong.

He leaned back in his chair and considered the situation.

The official reports had arrived but they didn't tell him anything that he didn't know. He was now certain that it was all a cover for what had actually happened.

And it would probably be some time before Riku managed to lay his hands on the unofficial report, even with his resources.

The prince's eyes returned to the broken arrow lying on the edge of the desk.

Mind suddenly made up, he pushed back his chair and stood up. He was going to pay Lord Kimihiro a visit.

xXx

The prince arrived just as Lord Kimihiro was about to leave. He could see the same ancient gold-traced carriage that the lord had travelled in to the Southern Ward. The warded vehicle was sitting on the gravel drive, the same two matching bays standing quietly in the traces.

Doumeki rapped sharply on the overhead panelling of the cabin of his carriage. His driver responded with a short burst of speed. But instead of pulling up behind the ancient carriage, the driver pulled up diagonally in front of it, blocking its path forward on the drive.

Even as the prince's carriage rolled to a stop in front of the bays, the front door opened and the lord appeared on the portico at the mansion entrance. He paused, taking in the sight of the carriage parked to block his own. Even at the distance between them, Doumeki could easily read the lord's irritated expression and the anger in his slim frame.

He was glad that the process of getting out of the carriage hid his slight smile.

"Your Highness." Frustration was clear below the politeness. The lord descended the steps, stopping on the last, still shielded behind the dreadful regard of the stone unicorns. For an instant, the similarity between the dark blue eyes and the stone ones was remarkable. "I was just about to depart." His eyes passed meaningfully to the royal carriage that blocked the path of his own.

Doumeki ignored the hint. "I'm coming with you."

The lord's eyes widened briefly then narrowed into suspicious slits.

Doumeki folded his arms across his chest and idly leaned against the side of his carriage. It was a perfectly fine day and he was fully prepared to wait it out.

Lord Kimihiro closed his eyes as if pained then slowly opened them again. He seemed disappointed to find the prince exactly where he had been moments before. With a sigh he stepped off the last step, moving towards the blocked vehicle.

The prince pushed off from the side of his carriage and moved to follow the lord.

With a quick movement, the lord's footman opened the carriage door. It swung open smoothly – there was no squeak of hinges or any other sign of its true age. Doumeki wasn't surprised to see that the interior was in immaculate condition. It was all dark wood with dark blue upholstering. Gold dragons glinted from odd places and shadowy black forms were embroidered on the fabric of the seats. Lines of silver wards traced along the woodwork of the frame. The result was a dark space that glittered strangely in a puzzle of ward markings once the light touched the metallic lines.

Lord Kimihiro paused in the act of getting in the carriage. He half-turned his head to address the prince. "The carriage?" He still sounded irritated but resignation was the overlying emotion in his voice.

Doumeki gestured to his driver and the carriage slowly moved from the gravel, jolting a little as it hit the grass to the side.

Lord Kimihiro sighed and climbed into the cabin.

Doumeki followed, ignoring the strange look the lord's footman gave him as the youth closed the door behind him. If they were anything like his own servants, a bit of hostility was only expected to be directed at outsiders.

Lord Kimihiro settled into the corner of the carriage, sitting on the bench facing the back. Dressing in black with dark blue embellishments, he matched the decor of the carriage, neatly blending in with the upholstery. Except for his face and gloves - they were luminous in the dark space. It only made the irritated glitter of the lord's dark eyes more startling.

The prince seated himself opposite the lord and simply stared at him.

With an irritated glance, the lord rapped the overhead panel of the carriage with his cane and it suddenly moved forward with a slight lurch. Silence reigned while the carriage slowly gathered speed as it made it's way down the drive.

Lord Kimihiro avoided the prince's eyes but it wasn't long until he started moving restlessly. Hands shifting slightly, readjusting their hold on the silver head of his cane. A slight resettling of his shoulders against the upholstery against his back. Finally his eyes started shifting - settling on the furnishings, the window, a black dragon on the opposite bench - everything but the prince who sat so solidly opposite him.

Doumeki said nothing, simply stared. It was simply a matter of time till the other man cracked.

The lord gave in, apparently uncomfortable with the lengthening silence. "Is there a particular reason why you came to see me or was it that you were hoping to enjoy lunch?" Somehow he managed to keep his voice politely enquiring even though the words were anything but.

"I'm after information."

Lord Kimihiro suddenly looked wary. "Information about what?"

Doumeki considered for a moment. "Tell me about spirits."

xXx

Who can resist Haruka? Besides he always wears a kimono and I can't say no to that :D


	6. Insubstantial Dreams II

Supernatural Entanglements:

Insubstantial Dreams

II

Kimihiro nearly sagged back against his seat in relief. He'd thought the prince might have been about to ask something much more difficult. "Spirits? What kind?" In his relief he was almost happy to answer any questions about the supernatural.

If only the prince's timing wasn't so inconvenient.

"People." The man didn't even change his expression. It was hard to say whether he was genuinely interested in the subject or had simply made it up on the spot as a cover for what he was really after.

"Dead people," the prince clarified when Kimihiro remained silent.

A twinge shot through Kimihiro's right eye and he fought the urge to rub the socket to try and chase away the looming headache. "What do you want to know?" If it was a simple question then he could answer it, take leave of the prince and be on his way.

"Everything."

Kimihiro grimaced. He'd forgotten that it was never simple when it involved the prince. He debated briefly on telling the man to get out of his carriage but reigned in his exasperation. As blunt and as unmannerly as it was, the prince's request was a call for aid in a spiritual matter and he was duty bound to answer it.

He had already decided that it would be wise for the prince to become more informed. Despite his irritating ways, he was a man to be reckoned with. And now he had entangled himself in matters of the supernatural world. It was only a matter of time before something took notice.

If it hadn't already.

Since it had been increasingly obvious that the prince was not willing to let matters be, the best measure would be to make him as informed as possible. And as Kimihiro was responsible for his introduction to the second world, it was his responsibility to see to that education.

"Spirits of deceased humans are rare." Kimihiro decided to take the prince at his word and started with the basics. "It takes a remarkable individual to be able to resist being drawn to the afterworld and remain in the second." He glanced over at the prince who had is arms folded across his chest.

"And yurei?" The gold eyes were probing. (1)

"Yurei are often harmless. As spirits who are only visible to their blood relatives, they do not cause the havoc that other spirits do." Dark blue eyes met gold squarely. "As a whole they don't cause harm but rather bring comfort to the bereaved. Nor are they a type of spirit that lingers for a significant amount of time. Most leave quickly for the next world."

"Then what about the crossroads?" The prince raised an eyebrow. "I was taught that they were teaming with the spirits of those killed by violence."

Kimihiro nodded slowly, his mood dampened by the mention of those dark places. "They are the second type of human spirit. In the first case remarkable individuals will retain their own individuality and be able to act upon their memories." His words slowed. "Many died with a task unfinished and seek to complete it after death."

He was too distracted by his own thoughts to notice the prince's suddenly intent look. "The second type, such as those that linger at the crossroads, retain their individuality for only a short time. Then they either merge with other spirits" he frowned "or become warped, fed by the strong emotions that prevented them from moving on."

"There are also-" He hesitated and the prince leaned forward slightly an intense expression on his face. "There is also a third type." His hands had tightened on into a death grip on the head of his cane. "Those who sacrifice their lives to inhabit an object that their power can be utilized by their descendants."

The prince's eyes narrowed. "Could it be done by just anyone?"

Kimihiro shook his head. "No. It would have to be someone in tune with the second world. Only someone with great power could carry it through successfully." His lips thinned. "It's usually an act of last resort."

He lowered his eyes to stare at the elaborate ward on the head of his cane.

An act of last resort.

He knew that was what they had been thinking. In the instances which it had been carried out, the situation had been hopeless but that one last act had given them the one thing to that made them go willingly to their destruction. Hope.

Hope that their last act would save the person they loved. That the power they left in his keeping would continue to do so even after they were gone.

An act of last resort.

Kimihiro knew he would likely one day face the same decision.

xXx

Lord Kimihiro fell silent for a long moment and the prince watched him closely. As best he could in the shadow of the carriage and irregular light from the windows.

"And the vase?" He finally asked.

The lord lifted one hand from the cane and made a little sidewise negating gesture. "That was a complicated situation. When the original owner of the vase died, they merged with the clay spirit that still lived within the vase. The result was the vengeful, territorial being that that harmed those who approached too closely. "A gloved index finger tapped the polished silver head of the cane. "It was because of this that the vine was able to work. The vine was produced by earth and water - the two elements that made up the clay spirit. As such it acted as a conduit for the spirit to travel to the second vase. By doing so it halved its power and was then safe to remove." Lord Kimihiro glanced out the window. The hedges that lined the drive were thinning as they reached the outskirts of the estate. "The Cotsgroves were fortunate that it was a minor spirit."

"And if it hadn't been?" Doumeki followed the lord's gaze and saw that the estate's gates were approaching.

The lord's voice was distracted. "Then I would have had to deal with the situation myself."

Doumeki shot him a sharp glance. The lord's face was solemn, his gaze intent on the approaching gate. He seemed unaware of the implications of his words. Lord Kimihiro hadn't exited his estate more than five times in the last four years by what he knew. If he was willing to brave the spirits that plagued him, then the matter must have been serious indeed. But more worrying was the fact that the lord had left his mansion at least three times the last month alone. Clearly the state of the second world was becoming unstable.

He studied the pale man sitting opposite him. Was it just duty that sent him out into danger, or something more? His eyes narrowed slightly. Was there something more to his involvement with the Southern Ward aside from his self-appointed duty? Doumeki hadn't forgotten the look on the lord's face when he had stared at the white fletched arrow. It had meant something to him.

A slight movement caught his eye and Doumeki turned back to the window.

The two halves of the gate marking the entrance to the estate were open as they usually were. The black iron was as stark as the black marble of the mansion. There was no glint of gold or silver, simply the uncompromising presence of the shaped metal. Even with the gate open, the boundary ward remained sealed – the arch of the gateway was an enclosed access, its bottom half a solid line of iron set into the road. And the gateway could only be reached after passing between the two stone guardians that challenged spirits and purified any visitor.

The prince, used to the sight of the gate, soon located the source of the movement. It was a crow that that had landed on the horn of one of the large stone unicorns that were set to either side of the gate.

Doumeki would have thought nothing of it if the man seated across from him hadn't been staring at it with a cross between wariness and dread.

Something small whizzed toward the crow and it took to the air with a cry that was audible even within the closed confines of the carriage.

Doumeki's eyes moved to the source of the missile. A youth with short brown hair and intense dark eyes stood just outside the boundary. He bowed his head as the carriage, which had slowed, drew closer and watched as it passed between the two unicorns.

The lord nodded firmly in return and rapped on the carriage's overhead panelling. The vehicle picked up speed once more.

Doumeki raised an eyebrow.

"One of my tenants," the lord explained. But there was no hiding the relief in his voice or the slight smile that curved his lips.

The prince looked out the window again but the youth was gone. There was only the open gates and the imposing stone sculptures to either side. There was no sign of the crow, either.

"The spirits that one is most likely to encounter are the second variety," the lord continued, suddenly a lot less tense. "If they are less than a century old then they can usually be dealt with through the rites performed by a warden." He smiled faintly. "It is also possible that you would manage it yourself with a little practice."

The prince ignored the last comment. "And those over a century?"

Lord Kimihiro's face grew serious. "If they have been left to their own devices for that long, most spirits become more powerful. They are known as soul-eaters, spirits that are able to devour people who are not properly protected." He frowned, "Some even become mononoke, spirits which are able to possess people. However, this can only be done if the person themself opens the way. Mononoke are not very intelligent. They are fuelled by emotions but they have nothing beyond their own greed, lust or thirst for vengeance."

The lord's gloved fingers tapped lightly on the cane. "Once they reach this stage, most spirits have free reign. And while they are undetectable, masked by the bodies they inhabit, usually their actions betray their presence."

"Usually but not always." Doumeki had been taught about possession but nothing like the detail he was getting now. It was also somewhat alarming to find out what was going on while he had been unaware of it. It was not a feeling he enjoyed.

Kimihiro nodded, fingering the ward on his cane. "The exception is goryo. Unlike most mononoke, they are usually better at hiding their presence. Not fuelled by emotion as much as their own desires, they are a more subtle and dangerous spirit." The lord regarded the prince with solemn eyes. "Few wardens would be able to deal with such a being - most have lost too much knowledge to be of any use."

"And you?" Doumeki was beginning to see why the lord was beginning to become more active. It seemed that there was simply no one else to deal with the rise of supernatural incidents.

Kimihiro inclined his head. "It is within my capabilities." A faint thread of a smile touched his lips. "But I wouldn't want to do it often."

He paused. "The banishing of such spirits is best dealt with an exorcist. There are few left now." His right eye flickered, a slight tremble of the lid. "Most are unaware of their ability and those that exist are besieged in their own territories." A gloved hand rose to rub at his right temple. "Less exorcists mean more spirits and those who can eliminate spirits become their targets."

His hand fell back to the cane and he glanced over at the prince. "And no," he said, forestalling Doumeki's next question. "I am not an exorcist. I can see spirits and banish some of them with the use of my construct but I am unable to do anything on my own." He took in a short breath. "Unfortunately most spirits do not make a distinction in their regard of me."

Doumeki was silent. He had no intention of revealing the nature of his recent dreams and to ask more questions would inevitably do so.

He glanced at the lord who was staring outside the window with a faint frown. He had no doubt that the man had the answers he sought. It would simply take a while to receive them. But Doumeki could be patient when the need arose.

The noise of the carriage moving forward was the only sound for a while. The prince had nothing to say and Lord Kimihiro seemed content to remain silent.

Their pace began to slow as they reached one of the quaint three-way intersections that dotted the landscape. The carriage made a turn that had the prince looking out the window once more. Doumeki suddenly realized that they weren't heading into the city. "Where are we going?"

Lord Kimihiro sent him an exasperated glance. "I was asked to intervene in a matter involving local crop yield. We're going to a small village north of Daiworth."

Doumeki frowned. "Isn't it dangerous for you to leave the estate for long periods?" His gaze passed over the wards carved in the woodwork of the carriage interior.

"Usually a powerful charm would suffice to appease the resident earth spirit," the lord conceded. "And if that failed, I would have recommended enlisting a local warden for aid." A line appeared between his eyebrows. "Unfortunately the Eastern Ward has slipped somewhat in regards to their traditional knowledge. They continue with the practises to preserve fertility and rainfall but don't have the knowledge of what to do when something goes wrong." He frowned out the window.

The prince studied the lord's profile thoughtfully. "Why not contact one of the lines that supports the Eastern Ward?"

Dark blue eyes briefly met gold. "They're busy dealing with something already." His gaze returned to the scenery outside the window.

The implications of that statement was enough to keep Doumeki silent for the rest of the journey.

xXx

1) I'm using a fair number of Japanese terms but don't take it literally. I have bent them to my own purposes.


	7. Insubstantial Dreams III

Supernatural Entanglements:

Insubstantial Dreams

III

It was nearing midday when the ancient carriage finally rolled onto the main road that ran through the village. Instead of going through the bustling centre of Daiworth, the carriage had avoided the town, travelling on less-used local roads. The prince had reasoned that it had something to do with the avoidance of some supernatural build-up. Either that or Lord Kimihiro simply preferred not to draw attention to his presence.

Doumeki made a note to look into Daiworth when he returned.

The village itself was typical of those in the region. The narrow road that was its focus was more suited to wagons rather than carriages. Thatched houses lined both sides of the road, a thin strip of land setting them back several meters from the rough thoroughfare. They were all of similar size and shape – it was clear that they were the dwellings of the villagers. They seemed curiously empty, though. There was no one in sight as the carriage rolled up the road.

Lord Kimihiro, who had been staring out the window lost in thoughts, and unpleasant ones by his expression, suddenly sat up straight, wincing. His hand rose to the side of his face, fingers pressing against his right eye. When he noticed the prince watching, however, the hand retreated.

The lord's eyes remained on the prince as the carriage started to slow. "I believe it best if we don't reveal who you are. I doubt that anyone would recognize you - most of the villagers haven't set a foot any farther than ten miles beyond their land."

Doumeki considered it a moment before agreeing with a nod. Personally he didn't care about what others thought about his actions. But he wasn't inclined to deal with the aftermath if certain people heard what he had been doing.

The carriage stopped with a slight creak as the driver pulled on the brakes. There was a thump as the footman jumped down from the footboard at the rear and moments later the carriage door opened. With a tight grip on his cane, Lord Kimihiro rose from his seat and left the confines of the carriage. Doumeki followed closely behind.

The carriage had stopped in front of a large wooden structure. It was larger than the other buildings set along the road. The high wall of the enclosure that ran round the boundary of the block was set on the edge of the street and the building itself was set further back at the end of a long stone-paved avenue that lead to is entrance. A line of slightly-raised stone edged either side of the avenue, the block engraved with a series of interlocking lines and symbols incised on its surface. The large red gate set in the enclosure wall at the end of the avenue confirmed that it was one of the old shrines that were still so prevalent in the country. (1)

Three people waited for them under the shrine gate. A young man dressed in plain but serviceable vest, shirt and trousers was in the act of stepping forward, ready to greet them. A middle-aged man with thinning black hair stood at his side. From the robes he wore it was clear that he was the head priest of the shrine the three stood in front of. A young woman stood slightly behind the priest. She wore the red and white of a priestess and her eyes were wide as they darted between the lord and the prince.

Lord Kimihiro met her gaze for a moment before addressing the two men. "I am Lord Watanuki. I believe that I am expected." He didn't offer to shake hands and Doumeki noticed that his cane had shifted hands to prevent any such contact.

The young man seemed slightly deflated to be pre-empted. "Konoe. Headman of the village. Lady Ellis said that you would be able to help us."

The head priest decided to intervene. "I am Hachirou, the head priest of the shrine. This is Suzume, my successor." A gesture at the young priestess who nodded silently, eyes lowered.

He glanced at Doumeki but when no introduction was forthcoming, he continued. "We seem to have offended the local earth spirits." A helpless expression crossed his face. "I have performed all the rituals I know but nothing has changed."

Kimihiro face revealed nothing but concerned interest. "What exactly has been happening?"

Konoe's eyes slid to the priest, as if seeking reassurance, before he answered. "Our crops have refused to ripen. It's almost as if they have stopped growing." An anxious expression crossed his face. "We've had the same rainfall we've had in previous years and the soil quality is as good as it always has been. There's no other explanation aside from the earth spirit's displeasure."

Doumeki wasn't so sure of that but he kept silent. If Lord Kimihiro thought it necessary to come all this way then it was likely that there was some sort of supernatural involvement that had to be dealt with.

His gaze turned to the lord. Kimihiro was looking up the avenue to the shrine. His eyes had darkened - an effect that was brought about by the widening of his pupils, the prince realized as he looked closer. His dark eyes were tracking the movements of something beyond the ward-marked walkway.

Doumeki followed his gaze. There were a number of stone lanterns, a statue of an ox with red bell-weighted ties round its neck and a number of trees. But aside from that he couldn't seen anything. Was it spirits or something else?

The two village men had fallen silent as they realized that the lord's attention had fallen elsewhere. The headman was looking slightly puzzled but the head priest was gazing at the lord with something along the lines of disbelief and surprized recognition. The priestess was looking at the lord nervously.

Doumeki's eyes narrowed.

"Perhaps we could walk through the shrine first." Kimihiro had finally torn his gaze away from what ever had caught his attention. His eyes met those of the head priest. "If you wouldn't mind." He didn't seem to notice the way that everyone had been staring at him.

The priest looked out onto the avenue and then back to the lord. He slowly shook his head. "Not at all. If you would follow me." With one last glance, he turned and stepped through the shrine gate, trailed by the headman and the priestess.

Kimihiro and Doumeki followed them a few steps behind.

Doumeki took the opportunity to ask a question. "What did you see?"

The lord looked at him, a trace of surprize written on his face. He didn't seem to realize that anyone had noticed his actions. "Yurei. The dead who still have tasks left unfinished." His gaze turned back to the one of the lanterns, his eyes narrowing slightly. "They don't mean any harm. They're watching over the shrine and the village."

Doumeki followed his gaze. There was only the lantern that he could see. "So what does that tell you?"

Kimihiro shot him a distracted glance. "That the problem isn't likely to be the shrine."

"Then what are we going to investigate?" Doumeki was curious though it didn't show in his voice.

Kimihiro frowned at him. "It isn't likely," the lord clarified, "but there's still something not right." He continued up the avenue.

With one last glance back at the lantern, Doumeki followed him.

xXx

Kimihiro frowned as he stood on the covered walkway that ran around the shrine. He stared out past the painted red wooden beams that supported the roof and the iron lanterns that hung from the eaves. The yurei still remained, pale silhouettes lingering between trunks and stone lanterns but they were not his main concern.

Neither, he was beginning to think, was the shrine.

Hachirou had guided them extensively through the shrine. The priest had led them into the open space of tatami mats and elaborate elemental arrangements (2) where prayers and offerings were made by the villagers to the resident earth spirit. A thin thread of smoke trailing up from a stick of incense was a testament that other people of the village were present even if they weren't visible. Absently listening to Konoe's nervous commentary on the origin of certain decorative features, Kimihiro had eyed the lines of the room. There were a few odd sensations, no doubt caused by the passage of the villagers, but nothing harmful. After a few moments he had suggested they move on.

With a mixture of relief and worry, the head priest drew back the elaborate doors that led to the formal offering room. More care had been taken here – while the decorations were more subdued, they were finer; the scroll paintings on the walls executed by masters and the twining serpent painted on the roof impressively realistic. The altar was a masterpiece of elegant simplicity, with panels of smooth, polished red wood framed by exquisite ward lines rendered in relief. The offerings on the altar were laid out in plain silver vessels that gleamed in the light from the lanterns suspended from the roof beams.

Kimihiro had dutifully examined the altar and the skein of ward that ran along the wall and wooden beams above them for any corruption. He didn't find anything and the prince's slight nod when he glanced over at the other man indicated his agreement.

Only the inner sanctum remained. Hachirou's face became grave at the implication that the centre of the shrine which he alone tended might be the source of the village's difficulties. Kanoe, Suzume and the prince had waited in the offering room while Hachirou led Kimihiro inside. Kimihiro was slightly surprised at how easily the head priest granted him access but surmised that Hachirou's concern for the village overrode any doubt the priest might have harboured as to the lord's purity.

The smell of incense, a faint scent that had been present since they entered the shrine, grew stronger as Kimihiro followed Hachirou through the plain door that led to the shrine's heart. Even with the obscuring threads of smoke from the incense that was perpetually lit and replaced once spent, Kimihiro could see that everything was in order. The wards were unbroken and the ritual objects were immaculate. The shimenawa (3), which connected the resident spirit to the shrine, was intact and properly guarded. Whatever the source of the disturbance, it clearly was not here.

Aware of the priest's growing dismay, however, the lord had suggested several methods for the cleansing of the shrine. While it would not solve the problem with the crop failure, it would still strengthen the existing wards. Something the lord was beginning to think wouldn't be a bad idea. He could sense something was still terribly wrong with the village.

The faint feeling had been nagging at Kimihiro as soon as he stepped foot into the shrine grounds. A thread of uneasiness that caught at his attention and now had him responding distractedly to any questions directed at him as he tried to locate its source.

It wasn't the feeling he got when there was a malevolent spirit in the vicinity. The prince's presence would have blocked that even if the spirits on the shrine grounds hadn't been harmless. It was something more subtle.

He was already beginning to suspect that it wasn't the shrine but something connected to it.

"Is something wrong?" Hachirou was gazing at him in concern.

Kimihiro became aware that he was frowning. And had been since they had begun touring the temple. "I would like to see the fields." His gaze slid to the priestess who had remained silent since they had arrived. "Perhaps Suzume could show me the way."

The head priest moved from Kimihiro to Suzume and back again. "Yes. Perhaps that would be best. I will start the offerings you have recommended."

xXx

Suzume was silent as she led them out from the shrine's enclosure and out onto the road. Her head was kept low so it was hard to see what she felt about the task she had been assigned.

The carriage was still parked in front of the shrine gates and both driver and footman watched them as they passed through the shrine gate and walked down the road.

Doumeki frowned at the narrow glance he got from the footman. Perhaps there was something more to it than he had first thought. He glanced over thoughtfully at the lord.

Kimihiro's attention was on the priestess though. He was watching the girl closely as they walked, a slight frown wrinkling his forehead. It was only after they had turned off the main road onto a well-worn track leading to the fields, he finally spoke. "Suzume."

The woman stopped at the sound of her name and turned around slightly her face still turned away.

Kimihiro had walked up closer and stopped a few steps away. "You see the spirits within the shrine's boundary, don't you?"

She finally turned to face him, eyes wide in her pale face.

Kimihiro smiled faintly. "It's alright. I won't tell anyone. Have you seen them for long?"

She shook her head. "Only since I came to the shrine."

The lord nodded. "Sometimes the ability can come on someone suddenly."

Her mouth opened and closed again before she gathered the courage to ask. "And you?"

Doumeki eyed the lord, interested in the answer.

Kimihiro met his eyes briefly before turning back to Suzume. "I've always been able to see them." His gaze lowered for a moment before he looked up again. "Are you afraid of them?"

A slow smile curved her lips as she shook her head. "One of them is my grandmother. She said I shouldn't tell anyone or the rest of the village might be afraid and try to exorcise them."

"That would be a bad idea," the lord agreed. "The spirits at the temple help to protect the village and it wouldn't be wise to remove them."

He paused, brow wrinkling as he thought how to phrase his next question. "Suzume is there another shrine near the fields? An old one that isn't in use any longer?"

The girl frowned in thought. "There is one near the rice fields. The farmers still make offerings to it before every harvest."

Lord Kimihiro sent an indecipherable look at the prince. Doumeki blinked but the other man had already turned back to the priestess. "I'd like to see it, if you would lead the way."

The priestess smiled and bowed. "Of course. Follow me."

xXx

1) I'm borrowing a fair bit from Shinto shrines but ultimately I've restructured the layout to suit my own needs.

2) Basically arrangements incorporating materials that represent the four elements (water, fire, earth, air) which are arranged by a fifth force: man. I'll go into this at a later date.

3) A straw rope with white zigzag paper (gohei) which marks the boundary to something sacred. I'm using it to represent the connection of spirits to shrines.


	8. Insubstantial Dreams IV

Supernatural Entanglements:

Insubstantial Dreams

IV

Without the worry that the spirits of the shrine would be exorcised, Suzume turned out to have a lively personality. As they followed the worn track leading to the fields, she told them of the history of the village and seemed to delight in pointing out the old sacred trees and detail their origins.

Lord Kimihiro seemed especially interested in what she had to say. At first the prince thought that it was because he wanted to learn more or it was a result of the connection he may have felt with her. But he soon realized that it wasn't the case. The lord was genuinely interested in what the priestess had to say - her life at the shrine, the role of the village in the district, the pattern of seasons and their affect on the people.

It was something he had never been exposed to before, Doumeki realized. The lord had hardly even stepped out of his front door in the last few years. During his childhood, he had hardly even existed in the minds of polite society and even in the years after his parents' deaths, his appearances had been sparse. The prince was beginning to wonder whether the man had been confined within the mansion for all that time.

Doumeki certainly couldn't remember anything about the pale lord during the time when he danced to his mother's wishes. And he was certain that he would have remembered the other man if he had ever seen him before.

He glanced over at the lord. The path was too narrow to walk three abreast and the prince had allowed himself to fall back - not actively part of the conversation but close enough to hear everything that was being said. It allowed him to follow the conversation without needing to play and active role in it.

It was interesting to see the lord in a different situation.

"-and so we ended up eating half of them and there wasn't enough to make the preserves." Suzume laughed and the lord smiled with her. But it was a smile that belied the emotion in his dark blue eyes. Doumeki saw it and stopped in his tracks.

Suzume looked up the path, unaware of the lord's sudden discomfort. "That's the shrine." She gestured to a wooden structure still half-hidden by several old pines.

Lord Kimihiro's gaze moved back to the prince as if checking that he was still there. There was an uncertainty that Doumeki had never seen before and the prince found himself giving the other man a firm nod. He moved forward so that he standing once more at the other man's side.

A faint look of relief slid across his face before the lord turned back to the shrine and took a firmer grip on his cane. After a moment he stepped forward towards the shrine. Doumeki walked with him, alert for the threat that the lord was sensing.

Suzume didn't seem to sense anything amiss. The priestess had already started up the faint trail that diverged from the main path leading out to the fields.

As they drew closer the shrine became clearer as their view of it became less obstructed by the trees surrounding it. It was old. The building was made from wood - there was no plaster or clay like the shrine in the village. Poles supported thatched walls and a thatched roof. But even though it showed signs of years of weathering, newer pieces of thatch suggested that the place was still being cared for.

To Doumeki nothing seemed out of the ordinary but the strained looks Kimihiro was giving the strine suggested that there was more the structure than met the eye.

Suzume had stopped a few steps in front of the shrine and stood waiting for the lord. He glanced at her searchingly for a short moment before walking closer to shrine. "When was the last time you came here?" He examined the wards carved into the beams that held up the curving roof.

"At least two weeks." Suzume followed his gaze and smiled at the faded paint work. "It isn't visited often except for before harvest but I like to come out here every so often." She looked out at the surrounding greenery. "It's so peaceful."

Doumeki looked at Kimihiro. The lord didn't seem to agree with the priestess. There was a faint sheen of sweat on his face that hadn't been there during the walk. His fingers brushed the silver ward on the end of his cane as he followed the line of the shrine's wards.

The prince followed his gaze. As far as he could tell they were intact. The shrine shouldn't be the source of whatever was bothering the other man.

Dark eyes met his own for a moment and then the lord turned and walked around the side of the shrine. Doumeki followed, not willing to let the other man out of his sight.

There was an explosion of movement and Doumeki found himself moving before he knew what was happening. He grasped the lord's arm and pulled him sharply back behind him.

Raucous calls filled the air and black wings clawed at the air. A wing buffeted the side of his face and suddenly it was as if he was against a dark undulating wall. It was only a few moments but the thundering sound of numerous wings and harsh cries still echoed in his ears as the last crow passed, it's pale eye seeming to stare into his own as it passed.

Doumeki followed the bird as it clawed higher into the air and disappeared over the roof of the shrine. He was suddenly reminded of the crow at the gate of Lord Kimihiro's estate.

His gaze shot back to Kimihiro. The shorter man was leaning against the side of the shrine, one hand wrapped around his arm where the prince had grasped him. The cane hung limply from his other hand. Darkened blue eyes stared intensely through him, seeing something that made the prince, for one second, afraid to turn around.

A small gasp made him turn to the side. Suzume had followed them to investigate the cause of the disturbance. Her eyes were wide as she stared past both of them. Before Doumeki could do anything, the priestess was moving past both of them and racing down along the side of the shrine.

Doumeki glanced at Lord Kimihiro but the man was already following after the priestess.

But the prince didn't fail to notice the glances he shot over his shoulder, the way his hand was clenched around the watch in his pocket and the tight grip he had on his cane.

When they caught up to the priestess, Suzume was standing over what had been a shimenawa.

The stand still stood but the twisted straw rope that was once strung between them was ripped into messy halves, the two parts hanging loose from each pole.

Kimihiro turned to Suzume who was staring at the destruction with dismay. "Do you know the rites to repair it?"

"Yes." It seemed hard for her to tear her eyes from the desecration.

"It would be best if you gathered what you need immediately." Lord Kimihiro's voice was urgent. "You should carry it out before sunset."

The urgency in his voice tore her eyes to his face. "Does it have something to do with the problem with the crops?"

"Yes. Hurry."

She did. With a frightened look, the priestess set off to the shrine in the village at a run.

Lord Kimihiro turned from the shimenawa and walked back to where he had been stopped by the crows. He looked off towards the trees at the edge of the clearing and pulled his other hand out of his pocket to grasp his cane with two hands.

Doumeki, who had followed him closely, followed his gaze. There was a dead rabbit on the ground. A dark glisten of blue and purple spilled out from the gaping wound in it's belly.

There was a sharp metallic snick as a metal spike shot out the end of the cane. The lord thrust it firmly into the ground, leaving the cane standing upright between them and the carcass. His hands trembled as he took them from the polished length.

"What is it?" Doumeki wanted to know what made the man look like he was going to pass out.

"Something that shouldn't be here." His hand had already reached into his pocket and he was drawing out the silver watch.

xXx

It was smirking at him.

Just the sight of it was making him feel ill. The yellow eyes reminded him that night long ago. A connection that was only strengthened as peeled it's lips back to reveal jagged teeth.

His fingers wrapped tighter around the pocket watch in his hand.

The spirit simply grinned as it pulled another rope of the rabbit's shredded spirit deeper into it's maw. It didn't seem to care about the threat he posed.

But the fact that it was able to remain while in such close proximity to the prince told him exactly what it was. It would take much more than the power he could channel through a construct to get rid of this thing.

But the feel of the watch in his palm steadied him, reminding why he was doing this. Doing all of it.

There was a soft sound of vegetation crushed underfoot. From the corner of his eye, Kimihiro could see that the prince had stepped forward slightly as if to confront whatever it was that he couldn't see.

The creature laughed soundlessly. It drew the last few threads that were still writhing in their futile attempt to escape towards it's mouth. Shredded as it was, the spirit couldn't have much of a sense of self left. Yet it still moved in frantic arcs as it was drawn slowly, inch my inch, into the waiting mouth.

Kimihiro flinched as the crooked razors snapped shut on the last thread. The horrid sound seemed to scratch along his nerves and thrust deep into his chest. A sudden cold sweat rose along his skin.

The spirit seemed pleased at his reaction. Spindly legs drew up so that the joints that would have been knees in anything else were up at its sides. Yellow eyes stayed fixed on him and the long bloodstained arms slowly withdrew from the mass of intestines that were leaking from the dead rabbit's gut.

Kimihiro twisted his free hand into his sleeve and clasped cold silver between his fingers.

Bloodstained limbs settled on stained earth and the gross body slowly rocked forward in preparation to stand.

The watch was impressed into the flesh of his palm. Ridges cutting into his bloodless fingers.

It rose slowly. The bloated body supported on impossibly thin limbs. Yellow eyes focused on him intently. The horrid mouth cracked open revealing bloodstained glass. A thin grey tongue slipped between the slivers and tasted the air. It leered as one leg moved forward.

Kimihiro's fingers tightened on the silver between his fingers.

A pale object skimmed through the air and landed on the ground between them.

Yellow eyes widened and the creature drew back with a hate-filled hiss. One bloodstained limb shot out in a promise of threat and then a geyser of oil-like smoke was pouring up from the ground and obscuring it from view.

When the black sludge subsided, there was only the dead rabbit and the folded paper on the ground.

xXx

Doumeki walked over and bent down to retrieve the origami star. Five points and twenty three folds. He had no idea what had prompted him to place the object in his pocket that morning - **blossoms on water** - but he was glad of it now.

His gaze turned back to the other man.

The silver picks had disappeared once more and the watch had already been returned to its pocket. Even as he watched, the lord reached out and pulled the cane from the ground. The spike slid free smoothly and retreated with a snick as Kimihiro twisted the silver head.

"Suzume should be returning soon. We should dispose of the carcass." He hesitated on the word and kept his eyes averted from the dead rabbit.

Doumeki's gaze moved to the mess. "What was it doing with it?"

"Attempting to defile the shrine. It somehow broke the connection of the spirit with this place. Then it sought to prevent the connection being remade."

"How?" Doumeki knew it was important by the way that the other man was acting so uncomfortable about discussing the matter. But he also wanted to know what had been happening to make the other man react the way he had.

It seemed a lot more than the death of a rabbit.

Kimihiro shrugged a shoulder uncomfortably as if trying to push away an unpleasant memory. "The death of the rabbit was a defilement. It killed it slowly then slowly shredded it's spirit to pieces." His shoulders hunched slightly. "But instead of totally destroying it, the creature took its time devouring it."

Doumeki looked back at the rabbit. "Should we bury it?"

The lord shook his head. "Burning would be best. It wouldn't be wise to place that in the ground." His lips pursed. "It shouldn't be here while the rites are carried out either."

A look of determination washed over his face and he walked over to the rabbit. One of the silver snail picks appeared in his hand and he stabbed it into the ground beside the rabbit. Another followed and another until finally there were five lengths of silver surrounding the carcass.

"A ward?" Doumeki had followed the lord and watched it all silently.

"Of sorts." The lord smiled grimly and laid a finger on one of the picks while reaching into his pocket with his other hand.

With a snapping sound, a thread of gold shot from the pick Kimihiro touched and sped to the other pieces of silver until an enclosed barrier had formed. There was a flash and then a dispersal of gold smoke that left nothing but burnt earth and five silver snail picks.

The watch was released and Kimihiro's hand left his jacket pocket. The picks were gathered up one by one and disappeared into the lord's sleeve. He used a hand to push off from the ground and swayed slightly on his feet once he'd stood.

Doumeki reached out a hand and steadied him with a firm grip on his arm. "What now?"

The lord let out a shaky sigh. "We wait for Suzume and make sure that the rite is carried out."

xXx

And this was going to be a simple situation but it turned out like this. Poor rabbit.

And the crows? They're messengers. But for who is not clear yet...


	9. Insubstantial Dreams V

Supernatural Entanglements:

Insubstantial Dreams

V

The ritual to repair the shimenawa seemed like an anticlimax after the events that had preceded it.

Hachirou and Konoe returned with Suzume as she hurried back to the shrine, items for the ritual of rededication held in her arms. The head priest cast a sharp glance at the burnt patch of soil and then at Lord Kimihiro who was standing on his own once more.

Whatever he saw on the lord's face had him turning to attend to the shimenawa without further delay.

The two nobles remained silent as the priest and the priestess, aided by the headman of the village, progressed through the ceremony that culminated in the attachment of a new piece of twisted straw rope between the two posts.

Doumeki watched closely. He had performed the ceremony several times himself and, despite the assurance with which Hachirou was proceeding, was making sure that nothing was out of place. He didn't want that thing to be able to return because the ritual was performed incorrectly.

He was acutely conscious of Kimihiro's anxious glances to the descending sun.

"The shrine will have to be closely maintained." The lord instructed when it was over. The skin around his eyes had tightened and his mouth had taken on a strained look. "Someone will have to come here daily to perform the rites." His gaze lingered on the shimenawa. "You will have to ensure that the connection with the resident earth spirit isn't broken again."

"Will the crop be alright if we do?" Konoe was anxious for the problem to be resolved.

Kimihiro nodded, wincing slightly at the movement. "As long as you maintain the shrine, there shouldn't be anymore problems." He glanced at the head priest as he said it and the older man nodded slowly.

"It shall be maintained to the same standard as the shrine at the village." His gaze turned back to the burnt patch of earth and the five holes remaining where the picks had been laid to create the ward. Even without sight he seemed to realize the seriousness of the situation.

xXx

The sun was already descending as they left the trail and reached the main road. The ancient carriage stood where they had left it, parked in front of the village shrine. The footman caught sight of them and immediately jumped down, ready to open the door.

Kimihiro turned to the head priest. Suddenly he stripped off his right glove and held out his hand. "Hachirou, I leave the shrine in your hands."

Doumeki tensed, uncertain as to what was going on but certain that it was important.

The head priest didn't hesitate but took the outstretched hand in his own. "I will maintain the wards."

Kimihiro gave him one more searching look and then nodded. He released the other man's hand and pulled the glove back on. "Suzume, Konoe. I hope that we meet in the future under better circumstances." He nodded to the priestess and the village headman and took his leave, moving to the warded safety of the carriage.

The footman opened the carriage door and flipped out the footplate so that his lord could enter more easily. Kimihiro smiled at him in thanks, tiredness now visible on his face, and pulled himself inside with the aid of the handle on the inside of the door.

Doumeki simply nodded at the villagers in farewell and climbed into the carriage after him. He ignored the dark look the footman gave him and the firm way the door was shut behind him, settling down onto the bench seat opposite the lord who had taken up his customary corner.

The carriage rocked slightly as the footman climbed back to onto the footboard behind the cabin and the lord rapped sharply on the overhead with his cane. The carriage moved forward with a surge as the horses were set to a faster pace than they had been travelling on the way to the village.

"In a hurry?" The prince was curious about the haste which had become more urgent as the day wore on after the creature had been banished.

Lord Kimihiro opened eyes which had slid shut. "It would be best to return before nightfall."

The rattle of the carriage, the slight chiming noise of the harness and the fast beat of the horse' hooves on the road was the only sound for a while. Lord Kimihiro rested his head against the side of the carriage, letting his eyes fall shut once more.

"Why couldn't Suzume see what was wrong at the shrine?" The question had been on Doumeki's mind ever since the girl had rushed past them both in favour of the shimenawa.

Kimihiro sighed, his eyes fluttering open. "Suzume's vision was selective. I suspect it was partly opened because of her grandmother rather than anything else. There are different types of sight. I have one of the most extreme - I can't simply turn it on and off. I see everything even if I don't want to." He grimaced.

Doumeki narrowed his eyes. "Was it always like that?"

"No." Kimihiro was tight-lipped. "It wasn't."

It was obvious that the lord didn't want to talk about it. But Doumeki could see the opening he had been waiting for and took it. "So anyone can start to see spirits?"

A slow nod. He seemed slightly less tense as the attention was taken away from his own circumstances. "The possibility is there but it rarely happens. Usually some sort of trauma is needed as the trigger. A near-death experience, the death of a loved one or a close brush with the supernatural. The circumstances are different for every person."

"And the range of their sight?" Doumeki prodded.

The lord's fingers flexed around the head of the cane. "Once again it depends on the circumstances and the person themself. One person may be able to see for only a short period of time while another may have their sight wrenched wide open and have it stay that way."

Doumeki watched the fingers polishing the silver ward on the cane.

They slowed as Kimihiro frowned. "It is also possible for someone to see spirits without the opening of their sight. But that is usually limited to those who had close ties to the deceased."

Doumeki opened his mouth but before he could question further, the lord had already continued.

"I suspect that was what happened with Suzume initially. She would have been able to see her grandmother at first and then slowly, over long exposure, the others would have become known to her sight. It usually only works for those with strong beliefs - these days it is a rare occurrence." The lord's expression was pensive as he turned to stare out the window.

Doumeki studied the lord's face. He didn't seem saddened that people with his abilities seemed to be quietly dying out. It was more a sense of resignation - facing a fate that had long been apparent and it was only a matter or time.

The thought made the prince slightly angry. The idea of giving up in anything had never occurred to him and to see it in the other man irritated him.

If Kimihiro was threatened then he should fight, not just simply allow himself to fade away.

xXx

It was dark by the time the warded carriage rolled to a stop on the gravel drive. Kimihiro straightened, blinking at the sudden cessation of movement. He looked out the window and saw that they had reached their destination. A faint flush rose in his cheeks as he realized that he had been sleeping. He glanced over at the prince to see whether the other man had seen.

Doumeki pretended not to notice.

The lord had fallen asleep shortly after he had finished talking. Doumeki hadn't minded - he was certain that the exhaustion that had rapidly descended on the other man was a result of whatever he had done to dispose of the rabbit. And with the lord asleep, he had time to go reflect on what he had seen and heard.

He had hoped to find out more of what had happened twenty years ago. But what he'd found was a tangled knot of threads that ran through the real world and trailed into the second. And the two were rapidly coming together in a situation that he was coming to realize was more wide-spread than he had thought.

And all of it centred on Lord Kimihiro.

The lord was straightening his clothes, smoothing non-existence creases made while he was sleeping. "I suppose you want to come in for refreshments."

The carriage door opened before the prince could reply and the lord stepped out, apparently not expecting an answer.

Doumeki darted a look at the footman who was blank-faced for once. The prince frowned and stepped down to stand next to the lord.

"Business prevents me." He noted that his own carriage had returned to the gravel drive and stood ready to depart. "Some other time."

Lord Kimihiro looked at him sharply. Though whether it was for the refusal or the way it was phrased, Doumeki was not sure.

The other man seemed to hesitate on what to say but ended up simply nodding. "Until then." After one last look at the impassive prince, he alighted the steps and reached the door. It swung open as soon as he approached and the lord disappeared within

Doumeki stared distractedly at the crescent set on the door for a moment before walking over to his own carriage.

His own footman opened the door of the carriage and he climbed in with the ease of a motion carried out thousands of times, barely noticing the other man.

The spirits were on the move. An unseen tide that was moving closer to shore.

Movement below the water.

Doumeki frowned as he settled into his seat. He was going to have to keep a closer eye on Lord Kimihiro.

xXx

Well that was packed with stuff. scratching head I didn't intend for it to be so long but it sort of grew on me.

More, you ask? Well I can guarantee you more lord and prince before Christmas. Not necessarily the next installment of Supernatural Entanglements but my Christmas post will go up and it will have stories featuring all the Watanukis. Look for it on the 17th December.

But before then another another Watanuki oneshot should go up. Which one depends on what I finish first.


	10. Unnatural Attraction I

AN: I decided to give Doumeki a nudge in this one. Not that it turned out that he needed it wry smile :D

Supernatural Entanglements:

Unnatural Attraction

I

It was not the place one would usually associate with nobility. But that was exactly what the man dressed in clothes befitting a prosperous merchant wanted. He didn't patron the place to be noticed.

The Calandrian was nestled on the edge of the upper-class district of the Southern Quarter. What had once been the city house of a nobleman who had lost his fortune in some ill-timed venture, had been renovated and converted into a combined inn and restaurant. The combination of elegant architectural surroundings and reasonably priced food and drink made it one of city's more popular rendezvous points.

This popularity was only enhanced by the open client policy that the establishment held. If you had the money and were inclined to behave yourself, then you were welcome, no matter your status. The clientele had accordingly shifted to the middle class with a number of individuals from higher and lower classes sprinkled among them.

The establishment reflected the needs of it main patrons. The restaurant and bar was set up for the middle class not the nobility. Tables spilled out onto the lantern-lit cobblestones that paved the inner courtyard. An ornate fountain still rested in its centre but the open space around it had been filled with serving tables and chairs. The imposing wooden doors that had once closed the building off from the street had been removed and people were free to come and go.

Into the courtyard, at least. The kitchen and bar occupied the ground level of the building and were relatively open. The second floor was another matter. It bore private rooms that could be rented for the night and entire suites that were secure and accordingly in high demand. The only access point was the twin staircase that led from the courtyard up to the covered walkway on the second level, which ran around the perimeter of the courtyard and allowed those who paid the price the luxury of privacy. As such it had an unspoken aspect of exclusive service that ran against its reputation for welcoming people from all levels of society.

The public aspect of the establishment matched its reputation, though. People ate and drank in public with no thought for social niceties. Customers wouldn't find fine kiln ware or silver utensils here. It was a bit rough but with enough polish to draw the adventurous noble scions for a crawl through the middleclass areas which, while seemingly dangerous were anything but.

Their very presence made the place safe. The nobility could hardly let their heirs come to harm and so a close eye was kept on the area by the wardens of the city. But not too close. Except to ensure that the place was safe, a blind eye was turned to the area.

It was this fact alone that made it the perfect meeting place. It was protected yet nobody would look too closely at the events that occurred on the premises. Most took great pains to do the opposite. And so The Calandrian had become a meeting spot for those who did not wish to be seen or commented on. As long as there were no disturbances and bills were paid, the identities of customers were ignored.

The sight of the well-dressed man seating himself at the table occupied by a prosperous-looking merchant, therefore, was not unusual. In the mix of class that often occurred here, such scenes were commonplace. And if both were seated at a table next to the fountain where the noise of falling water covered their words, the other patrons knew that it was best not to pay them much attention.

"I've heard you've taken up a new hobby." The newcomer commented with a smile as he took a seat. "Dabbling in the occult."

The merchant ignored the comment in favour of the bowl of noodles he was eating. The other man was only spared a fleeting glance between mouthfuls.

Used to such treatment, the noble started flicking a coin he held through his fingers. "Lord Kimihiro is an interesting man." A slight smile titled his mouth but his eyes were serious as he watched the coin somersault over the backs of his fingers. "As proper as any gentleman but he doesn't give a damn about popular opinion or the latest swing of fashion."

The other man's eating had slowed. He was listening now.

"Lady Ferris. A farmer from Canis Knoll." The coin rotated faster, flashing reflected light from the lanterns set throughout the courtyard. "A mercer from the Northern Quarter. A maid from Lord Ridgeworth's estate. The ambassador from Canar." The coin abruptly stopped with the last mention. The noble considered the faded face on the worn coin held between his fingers. "The lord has been having a lot of visitors lately for a recluse and social outcast."

Eating utensils had been laid down precisely next to the bowl of unfinished noodles. "The ambassador." It was a demand for more information.

"Yesterday morning." The noble narrowed his eyes at the coin as if looking for flaws in the marred surface. Or maybe he was trying to make out the image that had been worn down to obscurity. "His footmen were required to carry in some sort of heirloom which weighed a ton." The coin startled turning across his fingers once more, flashing bronze in the lantern lights. "The ambassador left it with the lord."

A slow curve shaped his mouth and the coin flicked faster. "Maybe it was a courting gift." The smile widened, white teeth flashing with the bronze of the turning disc of metal in his fingers. "He certainly seemed eager to return." Pale eyes flicked over to the other man. "The ambassador was back again this morning at dawn."

The merchant was not amused. "And the Southern Quarter?" The heat in his gold eyes warned the other man not to continue the previous train of thought.

The coin slowed. "Nothing that seemed to be out of the ordinary at first glance." A sardonic look from eyes that were like pale ice. Teetering between blue and white. "But your instructions were to look over everything again."

Back and forth. The coin travelled nearly three spans of the back of his fingers before he spoke again. And when he did his voice was more serious than it had been since the conversation had begun. "There are a number of reports that are worrying. There are always some strange incidents: reports of strange sightings; sightings of people who are meant to be dead; people breaking into unusual behaviour; inexplicable accidents." The pale eyes remained fixed on the slowly moving coin. "But they seem to be increasing lately."

The merchant's eyes narrowed. One elbow now lay braced on the table, a fist supporting his chin.

With a metallic ring, the coin arced up into the air. It seemed to hover momentarily as it reached the peak of its arc, and then descended once more in a fast fall. A quick hand reached out and caught it in a tight fist, abruptly pulling it from the air. "And then there's something strange happening in the wharf district."

"Strange?" The merchant's foray back into the noodle bowl was halted.

The other man frowned for the first time. His pale brows lowered as he examined the coin he turned over and over in his fingers. It was a nervous gesture rather than the absent movements of before. "There have been rumours that someone is killing animals. Dogs and cats along the quay." His frowned deepened as he fought to express why he found it so disturbing. "It's not the odd case where someone takes out their frustrations on some poor animal. Someone seems to have taken it upon themselves to dispose of all the strays."

He glanced at his companion. "Normally I wouldn't bother to investigate it. It's strange and it might upset a few people but ultimately it isn't a crime." He grimaced. "Unfortunately it seems to have escalated. One of the small merchants found one on his front doorstep." An uncomfortable shrug. "It's possible that it could be some sort of personal threat."

The merchant was watching the noble closely. He'd been paying close attention since the first mention of the dead animals. "But you don't think that." He knew the other man too well to think anything else. "You think it's something more."

The coin, which had been turning restlessly all this time, stilled. "A gut feeling."

A wry smile twisted his lips. "You're going to have me seeing supernatural influences in everything, from domestic disputes to robberies." He shrugged a shoulder as if shaking off the feeling. "It's probably just some frustrated yard worker. They can get a bit violent after a few rounds."

The merchant wasn't convinced. "Send a pair out to investigate it. A pair with training from the West Ward."

The noble had raised an eyebrow at the suggestion of sending wardens to investigate the matter. However the last recommendation had him breaking into a grin.

There was only one team that answered that description. Those trained at the West Ward were usually paired with someone who had been trained at another Ward. Only two wardens had refused to be separated - it had been a slight scandal at the time and only the interference of the Southern Keeper had prevented blood being shed.

By the two wardens.

"The big guy isn't going to like that." He seemed to relish the prospect.

The merchant was unmoved. "I'm sure his partner can calm him down." He ignored the grin generated by that remark and shovelled a load of noodles into his mouth. "Anything else?"

"Nothing of note." The noble seemed to have regained his good humour. The coin was flipping up and down in small arcs above his palm. He glanced over at the other man. "Do you want me to keep watching Lord Kimihiro?"

The merchant pushed aside the bowl and stood up. "I'll take care of it."

The noble shook his head as he watched the other man depart. There had been a lot of changes in the last few weeks and this was one of the biggest. Lord Kimihiro and Prince Doumeki. One of the most unlikely of friendships he'd ever seen.

His grin only faltered slightly when he found that he had been left with the bill.

xXx

That was Lord Alastaire Woodrow. You might remember mentions of him from Insubstantial Dreams and Masqued Intentions. You'll see him a fair bit in the future.

And yes, there is quite a lot of set up for future events XD

xXx


	11. Unnatural Attraction II

Doumeki gets asked some uncomfortable questions ;)

Supernatural Entanglements:

Unnatural Attraction

II

**A petal hit the water, sending expanding ripples across the still surface of the pond. They reflected the light of the lanterns, silver curves spreading across a dark plain.**

**"Can you see past the surface yet?"**

**Doumeki turned to see Haruka, dressed in a forest green kimono patterned with skeletal branches that reflected the real state of the weeping cherry in the Southern Ward's garden. His arms were folded casually across his chest and a thread of smoke leaked up from the end of the cigarette he held between two fingers. The white ribbon thinned and twisted until it disappeared among the blossom-laden branches of the weeping cherry above.**

**"I've noticed there's something under it." He paused. "But I can't see what yet." It was an answer similar to those he had given in the past when the older man had been alive and everything was simpler.**

**Everything but the questions.**

**Haruka smiled. "It's a start." He lifted the cigarette to his lips and another thick ribbon curled up.**

**Doumeki followed the line upwards, watching as it curled among the pale blossoms. The tree was much as it had been in the first dream, branches bowing down under the weight of the pale flowers.**

**His gaze returned to his grandfather. The older man acknowledged his look with a slide of gold eyes but remained silent. Doumeki let it stand – it was just as it had been when the man had been alive. He would speak only when he felt the time was right.**

**Doumeki did as he had when he was younger, waiting patiently as the older man smoked peaceably, eyes idly caressing a nearby strand of cherry blossoms. As the silence lengthened, Haruka reached up an idle hand and gently traced the edge of a tight cluster of blossoms, finger tips brushing the soft petals.**

**Haruka's eyes suddenly slid sideways, his smile widening. "So how do you like Kimihiro?"**

Doumeki's eyes shot open. Dark blue eyes stared back at him impassively. It wasn't until he saw the crack across one cheek that he realized it was the mural on his bedroom ceiling.

Doumeki rolled over, his eyes moving to the arrow sitting on the small table next to the window. The faint light from the lanterns outside lit the white fletching, allowing him to see it clearly in the dark room.

Kimihiro.

Did Haruka still watch over the city from the second world? Or had he known of the Watanuki line before his death? Doumeki found it hard to believe that he hadn't. As Keeper, Haruka had kept a close eye on everything supernatural in his city. He would have known of the Watanuki bloodline and it's support of the Southern Ward.

But had he known of Kimihiro?

His grandfather had never mentioned the lord before, but Doumeki had learned that the older man had kept many secrets. What he had once taken to be a betrayal was now revealed as a form of protection, keeping his grandson from being initiated into the second world and becoming a focus of its dangers. As was, apparently, the fate of all Keepers.

It was possible that keeping knowledge of Kimihiro from him was part of that. The lord was a walking target for the second world. And it was almost certain that the lord had been in contact with Haruka in some way. The look he wore when he had seen the arrow had been in part recognition. Kimihiro had seen similar arrows before.

And that question. There was no doubt that Haruka was aware of what was happening in the present.

That was if the dreams were an actual contact with the deceased Keeper and not just the conjurations of his dreaming mind. Sometimes he was certain that it was real. That his grandfather continued to make contact with him for a reason. It would certainly explain why he had only begun to have the dreams after the arrow had fallen into his possession. But there were also moments when he was uncertain whether it was just a reflection of the thought that troubled him.

Like Kimihiro.

He had to admit himself that some of the fascination he felt about the other man stemmed from the connection he saw the lord having with his grandfather. But the more he saw of the lord, the more he found himself returning to the bleak mansion and it's reclusive lord. There was something strangely appealing in the glimpses that Kimihiro allowed the prince to see: of his past, his work and himself. Doumeki had the feeling that he was seeing a side to the lord that no one else had seen before.

He was interesting when nothing had been interesting for quite a while.

Doumeki glanced out the window. The sky was lightening, taking on the bleached out grey that heralded the rising of the sun. It would be dawn soon and the day would begin.

The prince thrust back the covers and got out of bed.

There was one thing that he was certain of. Today he was going to visit the Canar Ambassador.

xXx

The ambassadorial residences were located in the central area of the city, near the royal seat. They sat just outside the third wall of the palace, laid out in the cardinal directions that corresponded with their homelands. Each embassy building was made distinctive by being built in a style traditional to their regions.

The Canar Embassy was located to the north of the palace walls. Canar was the northernmost country on the continent. It was buffered from the empire by several countries that lay between the two. As such relations between the two nations were cordial and most of their dealing focused on the trade of exotic goods rather than past conflicts or shared viewpoints.

The people of Canar were viewed much like their imports were: exotic and slightly dangerous. Uniformly tanned and dark-haired, they were a handsome people. An exotic beauty in the empire where pale skin and light hair were prized.

The Ambassador was a fine example of his people. The hair that was tied back and fell to his shoulders was nearly as dark as Kimihiro's, though it was a dark brow rather than glossy black. And where the lord was pale like fine porcelain, having been shielded from the sun for so long, the ambassador was tanned from a life subjected to a sun stronger that the empire was favoured with.

As he strode into the receiving room, the soft lighting showed off the warm colours of the traditional costume of his homeland. Even in the turning of weather to colder temperatures brought about by late autumn, he seemed perfectly comfortable in the long kilt wrapped around his waist, the light tunic and the drape of cloth that fell in graceful folds from one shoulder. The ambassador usually adopted clothing of the imperial style when he ventured out but it seemed that he was most comfortable wearing his native clothing within his personal residence.

Doumeki had never had particular reason to take notice of the Ambassador before, except for his role in the public functions that he'd had to attend in his former role as crown prince. The prince had regarded him with much the same indifference as he did other people linked with the palace. But now he found the sight of the man roused a sliver of hostility in him.

"Your Highness." The ambassador's face was lit by an amused smile. "Why do I get the feeling that this isn't a simple social call?" He ushered the prince to the low chair which sat opposite his own across the low table. They were typical of those in his country; made from twisted wood and with open armrests to allow for comfortable airflow to provide relief in hotter temperatures. The table itself was a thick cross-section of an ancient tree, the polished disk resting upon a stand of wood that was carved to look like gnarled sprawling roots.

Doumeki sat down without the hesitation another noble might have shown. He was used to the strange furniture. His education had covered all the information a potential ruler might need to know to ensure the smooth continuation of the ruling line. Foreign customs included.

"You visited Lord Kimihiro yesterday morning." Golden eyes flickered over the bowl of assorted candies laid out on the simple wooden bowl set on the table before settling on the ambassador's face.

"Ah, Lord Watanuki." The ambassador's smile gained more warmth. "A truly fascinating man. I hope to become better acquainted with his lordship in the future." He pushed the bowl of candied delicacies across the table so that his visitor could help himself as he wished.

The bowl was ignored. "I heard that you delivered a rather large package to the lord's estate."

The ambassador's eyes flicked down to the untouched bowl. "A matter of personal business." He raised one finely arched brow. "Your Highness, may I ask why you are inquiring on this matter?"

Doumeki was still. "The nature of your business concerns me."

"Ah." The ambassador's smile sharpened and he leaned back in his chair. His voice dropped its relaxed air and became frank. "Two days ago I delivered a certain Canar relic to Lord Watanuki. I was not informed of its exact nature - I was simply sent instructions and followed them."

He met the prince's eyes with a slight smile. "My visit yesterday was a result of my own inclinations. Upon meeting his lordship I was struck by his manner and bearing. A man with such refinement and possessing such pleasing qualities is quite rare. And I have no intention of letting baseless rumours and the rancour of society dissuade me." His mouth quirked with amusement as he examined the blank face of his guest. "The people of Canar are known for our unusual tastes, as you are well aware." His smile widened as he took in the impassive face of the prince. "But I had no idea that others shared my unnatural attraction."

He examined the other man's face for a few moments but shrugged when the prince remained silent. "If I had any idea that the lord was claimed, I would not have made my advances. I will not intervene any more." He made a gesture with one hand; tilting the palm to one side as if pouring something onto the floor.

His bright smile returned. "But come. You must tell me how this joyous union came about."

The smile turned into an amused grin as the silence lengthened and he saw that the prince still retained his expressionless face. "Ah, forgive me. I forget sometimes of that famous reserve. Such things are not normally discussed, are they?" He chuckled, not seeming at all put out to have been relieved of his quarry. "My best wishes to you both." He reached into the bowl of candied delicacies. "I am sure your lives will be long and prosperous."

Doumeki's hands twitched in his lap. "Is there anything you can tell me about the relic you delivered?" He blatantly ignored the well-wishes.

The ambassador's cheerfulness faded. "Only that I was entrusted to keep it closely warded at all times." His gaze flashed to the prince, suddenly deadly serious. The dark irises seemed to meld with the darker void in their centres. "Most of the practitioners in my country refused to go near it, professing its dark influence would overtake them." He smiled, even though his eyes remained the same. "But I have no doubt that his lordship has taken precautions."

xXx

Haruka is such a wonderful man. He helps make my job a lot easier :3

And of course the Ambassador (the alarmingly frank dear) made his own contribution :D I might just have to find him someone in thanks.

xXx


	12. Unnatural Attraction III

Supernatural Entanglements:

Unnatural Attraction

III

Something was wrong.

Kimihiro knew it as soon as the golden threads rising from the foyer ward rose unsteadily from the back marble laid into the floor. Their gold colour was as bright as ever but the lines themselves were thin, becoming more unstable the further they rose into the air. Even as they wavered upward, Kimihiro braced himself for the backlash that was soon to come.

The threads drew close to smooth ebony and reached forward to wrap around the black form that stood smiling in the centre of the ward. There was a soundless explosion as they made contact and the gold threads suddenly lashed out in whips of power.

Kimihiro had a split second to see the thread that was whipping out towards him. And then Ryuu was in front of him, a reckless amount of power flowing between the two of them as the construct grew in size.

The lash caught the golden dragon full on and lord and construct were sent hurtling back across the foyer. To Kimihiro it was two sudden impacts in quick concession. The first when the thread of power hit Ryuu and a backlash of power was sent back forcefully along his nerves. But he didn't have much time to appreciate the breath-stealing pain. A few seconds later and he was forcefully slammed into a wall.

His shoulder took the brunt of the impact and Kimihiro was wincing at the sound it made when he slid to the floor. For a few seconds he simply concentrated on breathing and slowing his racing heart. Adrenaline had flooded his body in a cold rush that contrasted with the lingering burn of his nerves and left him trembling.

After a few cautious moves to ensure that nothing had been broken, Kimihiro sat up. A stab of pain shot through his shoulder as he did and he winced.

Hikideshi appeared standing over him and took his shoulder in one hand and his upper arm in the other. He began moving the arm to test the injury and Kimihiro hissed in a breath as the butler's manipulations released the pain again.

The butler nodded in confirmation. "I'll prepare a compress. The ward will hold for another day or so."

Kimihiro's mouth quirked. So it wasn't serious but Hikideshi wasn't going to let him attempt the transportation any time soon. It was reassuring but frustrating at the same time.

Hikideshi suddenly tilted his head towards the south. "His Highness." He commented, helping Kimihiro to his feet.

The lord grimaced, more from the prospect of seeing the prince rather than the effects of the backlash. Why was it that the man always arrived when he was at his worst?

"My lord?" Hikideshi was enquiring how he wanted to handle the situation.

Kimihiro glanced around the foyer, eyes lingering on the black image in the centre of the ward. It was no use moving to the study - there was no way to hide the relic and the prince would undoubtedly want to examine it more closely.

"Let him in." Kimihiro made his way over to the staircase and slowly sat down at the bottom of the steps. He straightened his robe and smoothed the cloth over his legs, making certain that it hung properly. It wasn't exactly elegant but as least he was presentable. Not that the prince would care in the least. The man didn't seem to have more than a passing fancy for the conventions of polite society.

And at the moment Kimihiro was more inclined to sit down for a few minutes and compose himself rather than attempting the walk to his room to change. His whole body ached from the backlash and the shoulder stabbed at every sharp movement.

It was irritating that he had to deal with the prince when he wasn't at his full capacity. Ryuu had disappeared with the impact and with the way his nerves still burned, it was unlikely that he would be able to summon the construct for several days.

Hikideshi's instincts were usually correct.

Even if he usually wished they weren't.

xXx

As soon as Hikideshi opened the door, Doumeki knew that there was something amiss.

It wasn't the statue he could see in the ward over the butler's shoulder. Or even that Lord Kimihiro was already in the foyer dressed in one of his more simple robes. What immediately struck him as odd was that the lord was getting up from the bottom of the stairs.

It was odd that he had been sitting there in the first place. It was the sort of thing the man would avoid – for the lack of decorum it displayed if nothing else. His lips tightened as saw how tightly the pale hand gripped the banister rail as the lord rose to his feet. It was obvious that the lord had injured himself in someway.

Dark blue eyes looked up, widened by surprise, as Doumeki took a grip on Kimihiro's arm, providing support if he needed it.

"Did you fall down the stairs?"

It was an honest question but Kimihiro didn't seem to take it that way. For a second the prince thought that the other man would hit him. It was a close struggle if the murderous look in his eyes was anything to judge by. But instead the lord settled on prying his fingers off his arm. "No."

Doumeki allowed it, eyes narrowing at the slight wince the simple movement invoked. His gaze travelled around the empty space, skimming over the butler who had remained in the foyer and was unhelpfully blank-faced.

There was nothing in the area that would cause harm that he could see. Nothing to trip over or fall - the foyer was essentially an open space, bare of the usual furnishings that the nobility lavished on their entrances to display their power. It was all white and black marble. The black a thick tracery of wards that could pass as austere decoration but were terribly utilitarian to his eyes.

The only thing that was left was the statue that stood in the centre of the foyer ward.

Even at first glance Doumeki could tell that it was the relic that the ambassador had spoken of. The relic was a life-sized statue carved from a solid piece of wood. The dark black hue of the polished wood revealed its origins – it could only come from the steamy jungles of Canar. The subject was typical of the jungle nation, too. A scantily-clad sensuous woman who was smiling down with smug satisfaction at the hidden object she clasped in both hands between her breasts. Smooth limbs and folds of cloth were depicted in a disturbingly life-like manner, the highly polished curves glinting in the light.

Doumeki stared at it, feeling with every passing moment that there was something increasingly wrong with the statue. The smile, the closed eyes, the object hidden between the slender hands. The prince was convinced that the relic had somehow caused the lord's injury.

He glanced over at the lord. "The relic from Canar?"

Surprise briefly wiped away the lingering traces of anger on Kimihiro's face. But it was soon replaced by a suspicious look. "You seen uncommonly informed."

Doumeki ignored the implied question. "Is it cursed?"

"Not exactly." The lord's gaze moved to the statue and an expression of wary caution crossed his face. It was only a fleeting glance but Doumeki knew that his suspicions were correct. Whatever it was, there was something wrong with the relic. And it had somehow managed to harm the lord who was meant to deal with it.

Doumeki started towards the edge of the ward. Whatever it was, he was going to get a closer look.

xXx

Kimihiro followed as the prince moved closer to the ward's boundary.

He didn't like the man getting too close to the statue that lay within the thick black lines. While the ward held it now, there was something about the piece that put him on edge. And it wasn't just because it was one of Yuuko's payments and they tended to be among the more dangerous things he dealt with. Or even that the statue had resisted its transportation when the precautions he had made should have been enough to contain it. No. It was the nagging sense of unease that had started to grow once Doumeki had walked into the foyer.

It didn't feel safe to have both the relic and the prince in the same room. Let alone the same building.

"What are you going to do with it?" The prince had stopped at the edge of the wards, his shoes separated from the protective barrier by a scarcely a hand span. He was staring at the statue narrowly, as if he thought that it might suddenly turn into something monstrous.

Kimihiro stopped a little further back, more wary after his clash with the relic. Despite his earlier anger at the suggestion that he was clumsy enough to fall down his own staircase, he couldn't help but feel a bit of concern for how close the prince was to the edge of the ward. "I cannot bind it." His worry making him admit the lack, even if it did show him in a poor light. "So I have to send it to someone who can."

A sharp gold glance. "Like the vases?"

Kimihiro hesitated a moment then nodded. "The principles are the same." Except that it didn't seem to work this time. The failure was making him more uneasy every moment now that the prince was here.

He didn't want anyone caught up in his mistakes again.

"Another payment?"

It was like the man to remember the most annoying of details. "Yes." He left it at that. He didn't intend to go into the details of the bargain he had made with Yuuko. The prince was already entangled enough with the supernatural.

Doumeki could obviously sense there was more to be said. He turned from the relic and focused his full attention to the lord, pinning him with a sharp gaze. As if by silently waiting he could get Kimihiro to tell him everything he wished.

Kimihiro felt a spurt of annoyance at the thought. As if it wasn't enough that he was-

He frowned. There was something not quite right. He glanced at the statue once more. It stood silently in the black tracery of the ward. The woman still smiled down at it's captive even as the relic stood caged itself.

A chill ran down his spine.

"What is it?" The prince had caught his uneasiness and was glancing between the statue and the lord.

He shouldn't be here. Kimihiro suddenly knew it with urgent certainly. He turned back to the prince, formulating something to get rid of the man before it was too late.

A crawling along his still-twinging nerves interrupted before he could open his mouth.

It was there again. Kimihiro could feel his polite facade falter and melt away. The blood drained from his face as he saw what lay in the centre of the ward.

The statue's eyes had opened.

And they were staring hungrily at the prince.

xXx

(wry smile) Doumeki strikes me as remarkably like a homing pigeon sometimes. He also moves ridiculously fast when he wants to. But then, so can Kimihiro.

xXx


	13. Unnatural Attraction IV

Supernatural Entanglements:

Unnatural Attraction

IV

Doumeki found himself stumbling backward as Kimihiro pushed him back sharply. Part of him wondered at the strength of the other man even as the rest was starting to be overtaken with growing alarm as the lord placed himself firmly between him and the ward in the foyer.

"Hikideshi!"

The butler was already flinging back the lid of the long case he had dragged from behind the rise of the staircase. It hit the ground with a dull clang that echoed in the foyer and then the man was pulling out its contents - several long metal poles that looked to be silver. He separated one from the others and threw it.

Kimihiro caught it awkwardly in one hand and, after having gained control of it with both hands, stepped forward and rammed it home in the circular hole hidden among the twining decorations infilling the point of the main ward. Even as he did so, Hikideshi did the same on the other side of the ward.

Two poles. The ward incorporated seventeen points. Eight of them were re-enforceable, which left six to go.

Doumeki made to step forward, to help-

Blue eyes shot him an angry glance. "Keep back!"

The urgent command stopped him in his tracks. He had only heard that tone when the situation was serious. It was clear that Kimihiro was in the middle of something. And the consequences could be dire if he interrupted.

He subsided, hands fisted at his sides as he watched Hikideshi ram more of the poles home. It was done with a brisk efficiency that suggested the man had done it countless times in the past - something that the prince was not happy about. How many times did Kimihiro deal with situations like this?

Whatever the situation was. It was maddening to only stand by helplessly; not knowing what was wrong but knowing nonetheless that there was some danger that he couldn't see or protect against.

The lord still stood in front of him. Wrapped in his robe and one hand clasped tightly around his pocket watch, he looked like a thin shield. For it was obvious that the lord had set himself up as one, standing between the prince and the danger that had suddenly erupted in the centre of the ward.

Doumeki wondered whether it was duty or something else that moved him so.

He doubted it was the same thing that moved him to return to visit the lord when he could be seeking answers elsewhere.

xXx

Kimihiro could feel the prince's eyes on his back but couldn't spare the attention to worry about what the man could be thinking. It was enough that he was staying back out of the way and not risking himself by offering some misguided sense of aid.

At the rate things were going, that would have only made the situation worse.

Kimihiro stared at the relic set at the centre of the wards. While to other eyes it may have seemed the same, in his sight, its appearance had changed dramatically. There was more than the open eyes, now. The smile had widened, showing a black void that was framed by neat white teeth that had never been carved from wood. It had awakened and had clearly set it's sights upon the soul it wished to possess.

Kimihiro's hand clenched tighter around the watch.

Hikideshi knew the danger and was moving faster. Only three of the poles remained to be set in place. Even as Kimihiro stared down the relic's inhabitant, the third was set in it's place and the butler was already moving to the second, only metres away.

The spirit bound within the relic seemed to sense the closing ring. The eyes turned from the prince and turned to the smaller gap within the wards, the pole set in it's centre and the lord who stood behind it.

As second pole was set home, its smile widened.

The sightless wooden eyes were on him as the clasped hands resting between the carved breasts began to slowly open. A great tangle of black threads came surging out through the widening cage, drifting out through the opening. They rushed towards the space in the wards that was still lacking the second round of defences in a bid to reach the prince before the opportunity was lost.

Kimihiro would not allow it.

Hikideshi threw the last pole and Kimihiro darted to the side, snatching it from the air and ramming it home. He released his power into it's length as he would have the watch when he summoned the construct. The black threads, which had been nearing the edge of the ward, froze.

Eight re-enforced points around a central ninth point, the object to be warded itself.

The threads coiled back on themselves, spreading out through the perimeters of the ward, searching for a weak point. There was none. The ward had been commissioned along with the mansion and had been set to withstand the strongest forces. Reinforcements of silver only made it more certainly sealed.

But even as he watched the black mass pour out faster from between the cupped wooden hands, Kimihiro knew that it was still just a temporary block. The wards had been made primarily for defensive capabilities, to keep spirits out. They weren't intended to keep such things within them for long periods.

He had no choice but to consult Yuuko for a solution.

xXx

When the last pole was set in place, the foreboding atmosphere in the foyer seemed to dim. The prince frowned - it was obvious that the last frenzied moments had been focused on the bolstering of the wards. But the statue still remained in their centre.

If it could suddenly become dangerous within the wards before the reinforcement, there was no guarantee that it would not do so again.

Kimihiro let go of the pole and stepped back, eying the ward warily. Doumeki's first instinct was to go forward but he hesitated, unsure whether the time had passed for him to keep out of the way.

The lord's attention turned to him at the aborted movement. He frowned. "Hikideshi."

The butler bowed, "My Lord?"

"Ready the wards."

The butler's eyes flickered but he bowed once more. "Yes, my lord."

The lord's gaze sharpened. "Your Highness. Unless you want to become a soulless husk, I suggest you accompany me to the study." The words were made sharp by an edge of anger and he didn't wait for a reply, simply started off in the direction of the study. After a slight hesitation, Doumeki followed.

While Kimihiro's pace could not be called anything as indecorous as a run, his fast steps made Doumeki increase the speed of his own to catch up. He trailed closely behind as the lord sped through the east wing. It soon became clear that the study was his goal.

After opening the familiar wooden door, the lord skirted round the low table and the armchairs set around it, heading for the small writing desk next to the window. After hastily pulling out the chair that was tucked under it, Kimihiro sat down at the desk.

The prince followed, standing close by so that he could see what the man was up to. It was obvious that he wasn't going to be told what was going on so he would have to watch and figure it out for himself. The lord shot him an irritated look but ignored his presence, intent on retrieving whatever he had been in such a hurry to claim.

A thin piece of purple writing paper was retrieved from a drawer, soon followed by a fountain pen. The paper was laid down on the desk's surface and Kimihiro began writing in a smooth fluid hand.

From where he was standing at the side of the desk Doumeki could easily read the words.

_Lady Yuuko_

The lord lifted the pen from the paper and waited a few moments. More words soon appeared as if another unseen hand was writing on the page.

_Kimihiro. Has something happened?_

The lord shot the prince a look before setting pen to paper once more. _I need advice._

There was a longer pause this time. _The latest payment has not yet arrived._

A moment of hesitation on the lord's behalf. Finally he wrote a few more lines. _The transportation rebounded. The relic has awoken and now sits as the ninth point._

The answer was immediate this time. _Try again. I will open the way from my side._

The lord's expression turned grim.

Doumeki decided that he'd had enough of unanswered questions. Kimihiro seemed to sense that he was at the edge of his patience for his eyes immediately darted to the prince who was towering over him.

"Your Highness, I suggest you stay here while I tend to this matter." Despite the courtesy of his words, it was clear that it it was not a request. "It might be dangerous otherwise."

Doumeki wasn't impressed. "For me or you?" He asked bluntly.

An angry spark lit the lord's eyes. "Both of us. But it will be worse if you are there." It was a cold response. As if the events of the last few weeks had never occurred and he was a hindrance rather than an aid.

Doumeki's lips thinned. He could feel his hands fisting at his sides.

The lord took it as agreement. Either than or he wasn't going to accept being gainsaid. He stood up and brushed past the still-motionless prince and headed towards the door. "I will send Hikideshi with refreshments."

The door shut firmly behind him and he was gone.

xXx


	14. Unnatural Attraction V

Supernatural Entanglements:

Unnatural Attraction

V

Hikideshi entered the study a few minutes later. The butler was expressionless as always as he laid down the platter (scones this time) and began laying out a tea set.

Doumeki, sitting in his usual chair at the table let the man pour but didn't pick up the cup after the butler had finished serving. He didn't trust himself with the fragile porcelain at the moment.

"How long have you served Lord Kimihiro?" It was an idle question. To distract himself from the turbulent emotions skipping though his mind rather than anything else.

Dark eyes slowly moved to his face. "I have served Lord Watanuki since his birth."

It wasn't the most open of responses but it was one nonetheless. Doumeki suddenly wondered if he could find out more from the butler than the lord himself. It was worth the try. If only to keep his mind of the clash that was no doubt occurring in the foyer.

"So you served Lord and Lady Watanuki?"

A slight inclination of the head. "I have always served the Watanuki line."

Doumeki considered for a moment. "Did my grandfather ever come to visit the Watanuki estate?"

A slight pause. "The previous Keeper of the Southern Ward never set a foot within the estate boundary."

The prince shot the butler a sharp look but the dark eyes met his own impassively. It was truth as far as he could tell.

He frowned. "Do things like this" a gesture to the door and the foyer further beyond "happen regularly?"

"Lord Watanuki, just as his parents, takes his duties seriously." Not exactly a reply but there was more than the words in that comment.

Doumeki sat and thought about that answer for a while. But before he could another question, the butler suddenly stiffened and his head turned sharply towards the foyer.

Doumeki rose from his seat, tea and scones forgotten.

xXx

The threads of black had multiplied in his absence. They twisted in on themselves, writhing together within the boundary of the wards. But despite the coiling mass, Kimihiro could still see the statue in their centre. The relic's eyes were wide open and it's mouth was split in a jagged curve which widened as it caught sight of him once more.

While Doumeki was a more appealing morsel, the statue's inhabitant wasn't opposed to having a short entree. If it could break the ward, overcoming him would be an insignificant matter – it's unwarded presence would be enough to render him helpless. There would be no defence against it's intentions to rip the soul from his body. Unopposed, it could then move on to the prince. His soul would resist longer - he had some natural resistance rather than the susceptibility that Kimihiro possessed. His death would be a long and drawn out affair.

Annoying and rude as the man was, Kimihiro would rather die than let that happen.

The relic seemed to sense his determination. The hands had almost fully opened at this point. Once they had opened entirely, it was likely that the ward would finally fall.

He had no choice.

Kimihiro wrapped his hands firmly around the nearest silver pole set in the wards and initiated the transportation.

There was a reason why he had Ryuu to channel his power. Unlike his parents, Kimihiro couldn't simply use it on his own without any outside aid. His ability had been...damaged. He'd had to find a conduit to enable the process and the result was the creation of Ryuu.

But summoning the construct was out of the question now. He had no choice but to approach the matter directly. It was possible for him to do it, but it was an unstable and imprecise method. Usually he only did it for small things like the removal of the desecrated rabbit. And even that had it's own toll.

In this case he had no choice but to go full out. With the dangerous state that the relic was at, he couldn't risk the wards faltering. The consequences were too great. Hikideshi had already set the wards for transportation - all he had to do was provide enough power to get the statue into Yuuko's hands.

It was worse than the rebound. A lot worse.

Kimihiro tried to block out the searing pain shooting through his right eye, the snarl on the relic's face and the frantic attacks of the black threads on the wards. He concentrated on keeping the flow as smooth as possible, feeding power to the ward and along the lines that would initiate the transportation.

It wasn't as well executed as he would have preferred. The wards flared, causing the black tendrils from the relic to recoil several metres until they were compressed into a thick twisting layer around the statue at the ward's centre. The lines of gold that rose from the ward were too thick to be called threads. The solid spikes of power sprayed scatters of flaring gold around their solid cores. It was obvious that he had poured too much into the wards but at this point he didn't dare stop. He simply continued to feed the wards.

He wasn't going to stop until the relic was gone.

The golden pillars rose from the points of the ward, curving over to meet in the centre directly above the relic. There was no waver, no sudden cessation. The curving lines blazed - a solid cage of power that even the spirit inside the relic could not withstand.

The way from the other side suddenly opened. The ward flashed with a great roaring flare that was an audible noise. The pull of power suddenly vanished and the light disappeared, showing an empty ward, still studded with the silver poles

The pain shooting through his eye into his brain was so encompassing that it took a few moments for Kimihiro to realize that he was on his knees, still hanging onto the silver pole. It burned in his grasp, heated by the vast amounts of energy that it had just contained. He took a few moments to reassure himself that the statue was indeed gone before starting to pull himself back to his feet.

He wavered slightly once he standing. The movement had set fire coursing along his nerves straight to his heart and awoke the headache that now pounded in his right temple. He was half blind with the pain and his right eye was leaking tears that he roughly wiped away. He couldn't stay here like this.

Kimihiro gingerly let go of the pole he still held onto and stumbled over the staircase, sinking down onto the bottom step. It hurt to breathe and there was nothing more he'd like than to stretch out on the floor and fall asleep. But he couldn't.

No doubt Hikideshi would be rushing to the foyer, Doumeki not far behind him.

xXx

When Hikideshi suddenly left the study, Doumeki was right behind him. They had just left the study when a loud roaring noise came from the direction of the foyer.

They both broke into a run.

They reached the foyer moments later. Doumeki's eyes immediately went to the ward but Hikideshi was already heading for the end of the staircase.

Doumeki's heart skipped a beat as he spotted Kimihiro inelegantly slumped on the lowest step. And then he was only a few seconds behind the butler.

Hikideshi had one of Kimihiro's hands held in his own. He turned it over and suddenly pinched hard at the flesh between thumb and forefinger. Kimihiro flinched. But whatever the butler had done, though, seemed to revive the lord. He gathered enough energy to glare up at Doumeki as he gingerly flexed the hand that the butler had released.

"I told you to stay in the study." Kimihiro's dark blue eyes stabbed him with an angry glance.

Doumeki folded his arms across his chest. "I want an explanation."

As expected, the demand only stoked the flames. The lord's eyes narrowed. For a moment Doumeki expected him to say something scathing. But instead, after a glance at the empty ward, he complied with the request.

"The statue was a relic from Canar. It was carved several hundred years ago to imprison a spirit that was wrecking havoc through the country. Appearing as a young maiden it would approach those with strong connections to the second world under a guise of requesting aid." A sharp glance at the prince. "Priests and warden-equivalents were its main targets. When their guard was lowered, it would then reveal it's true form and rip their soul from their bodies."

After a pause to let that sink in, the lord continued. "After it was bound to the statue, the relic was kept in the central shrine of the Canar capital." He eyes flickered. "I was able to persuade the head priest that I could deal with the matter."

Doumeki frowned. There was clearly more than what the lord was saying. Not even the queen had communications with the head priest of the Canar cult. That Kimihiro did and had been able receive one of their ancient relics was slightly disturbing.

"As part of the price which I am paying, I often deal with such things. As such my estate is not a safe place." He paused. "It would probably be best if you didn't return." The words were firm but the lord didn't meet his gaze, his dark eyes turned to the floor.

The prince studied his face closely. His arms unfolded. "I will take my leave then." He didn't miss Kimihiro's slight flinch. Doumeki walked to the door that Hikideshi moved to open. He stopped in the open doorway and looked back. "But I'll be back in a few days." There was startled look from blue eyes before the door closed behind him.

Doumeki paused briefly on the portico to take a deep breath. His visit had been in part a test. A test to see the strength his feelings. To see whether he had indeed begun to slip into depths that Haruka was hinting at.

The sight of Kimihiro on the bottom of the steps had cleared up any confusion nicely.

Now his course was clear - to make sure that Kimihiro survived long enough to get him firmly ensconced within the Southern Ward. It was clear that he was not safe even within the warded bounds of his own mansion. Doumeki planned to have him close where he could keep an eye on him.

Doumeki started down the steps, heading towards his carriage. He wasn't going to let anything happen to Kimihiro now that he'd found him.

xXx

Kimihiro stared at the closed door, uncertain exactly what he was feeling. The warding tracery on the wooden panel seemed to mock him.

He flexed his hand. The dull ache was beginning to wear off, a sign that the temporary block Hikideshi had initiated was soon going to fail. At least it had lasted long enough that Doumeki didn't see him in his debilitated state.

Hikideshi had seen the movement and came to stand at his shoulder. "His Highness is a curious man."

Kimihiro turned his head to regard the butler. "In what way?" It was uncertain whether he referred to the man's personal manner or his spiritual one.

Hikideshi turned his solemn gaze to his master. "All of them."

The lord frowned. Unsettled by the response and not quite sure why.

Kimihiro knew that the prince had ulterior motives when he came to visit. He had felt the man's eyes on him often enough to know that. He was waiting. Waiting for the answers he sought. To his grandfather's death and the cause of the suddenly movement in the supernatural world.

His fingers traced the pocket watch. No doubt the day would come when he would have to tell all of it. The prince was too persistent to be thrown off the trail .

And he deserved to hear it from Kimihiro himself.

The lord's eyes fell on the foyer ward. But until then, he could only hope to support the Ward as he had been and ensure that it's Keeper was protected.

He owed Haruka that much.

xXx

Hikideshi never lies. He may not say everything or even make much sense sometimes but everything he says is truth.

As for Doumeki...Let's just say that that if Lord Kimhiro started running now he couldn't get away. As it turns out he's quite oblivious and can't go anywhere. Fish in a barrel :D But really, Doumeki sort of jumped the gun at this point. Revealing that at this stage (shakes head) not that he didn't get the idea early on, but still...

Anyway. 53rd Regiment up next. Followed by Lonely (chan boys!) and Black Widow (more lord & prince). If all goes to plan :D


	15. Black Widow I

AN: This was originally meant to be a side story. But then it wasn't. A lighter instalment for you all :D

Supernatural Entanglements:

Black Widow

I

Like in so many recent situations, Lord Kimihiro found himself going out of his way not to involve the Keeper of the Southern Ward in his business. But the prince persisted in showing up at the most inconvenient of moments. The result being that he was inevitably present when Kimihiro was involved in matters that he would rather keep secret.

Kimihiro had tried to avoid him but the prince always appeared once something was in the wind. Not even the blunt statement that he should stay away had any impact. A few days later and the man was back in his study consuming whatever appetizers that were kept stocked in the larder for unexpected guests.

Though with the prince's regular visits, it was not so much a matter of unexpected appearances as keeping his vast appetite satisfied. There had been a significant rise in provision costs since the prince first walked into the mansion.

It was but one of the inadvertent ways the lord found himself catering to his uninvited guest.

But it was this specific occasion that Kimihiro thought the entire thing had gone too far.

"Yuuko." Kimihiro tugged unhappily at the garments he wore. "Are you sure this is entirely necessary?" He was still mystified as to how he had come to consider the idea, let alone don the clothing he wore.

Yuuko smiled, her heavy-lidded burgundy eyes gleaming with amusement. "You wanted to be able to avoid the sharp eyes of His Highness, didn't you?"

Kimihiro's eyes lowered. "Well, yes-" He still felt slightly bad about going behind the other man's back, even if it was for his own protection. A feeling that only made him feel more put out with the man - why should he be feeling that way when it was the Keeper's fault that he had to resort to this in the first place was beyond him. The prince's unyielding gaze on the mansion had become apparent and it was necessary to resort to subterfuge. He just wondered if there was any other way it could be done without the costume he found himself in.

Kimihiro unhappily surveyed the garment he wore. He couldn't see the high neck but he could feel the silky cloth against his skin rising to stop just short of his jaw. If he tucked his chin down he could feel the layer of black lace that fell down in a feathery collar to trail over his chest. And what he could see, didn't make him feel any better about the situation. Plain black sleeves covered the length of his arms, terminating in a modest hem of black lace around his wrists. The bodice, the black fabric hinting at patterns in a darker shade of black, supported a fake bust, hugged his sides and narrowed sharply at his waist. It finished in a ring of lace that matched the fall at his throat and wrists. Skirts of black taffeta bloomed out from under the lace and fell to the floor around his feet.

It was a nice enough dress. He just wished he wasn't the one wearing it.

"Kimihiro."

The lord looked up. When Yuuko took that deadly serious tone of voice, a person would do well to listen to her words.

"This is the best way." Her eyes were dark rubies, dried blood surrounding unfathomable centres. "Consider the status of women among the nobility. They are either ladies or wives. They are not regarded as themselves but the links to certain lineages and the bearers of children. A woman is not taken as seriously as a man, nor is she a sight to be remarked upon. A woman can go anywhere and her presence will be explained away by those who see her." She paused. "And never will a woman be associated with the lord of a heavily-warded mansion. None of the prince's eyes will link the two of you."

"Furthermore this is the best guise to approach this matter." Her face assumed the customary blank look she wore when she was either presenting a choice she did not want to influence or hiding the way she felt about someone. "A man would never gain access to the Lady without rousing her suspicion." Her eyes narrowed. "Or her avaricious nature. It would be dangerous for Lord Watanuki to go there. He is too tempting a target for her." It was left unspoken that it would be even worse if the prince accompanied him. Doumeki was even more appealing.

Kimihiro turned her words over in his mind. It was true, little though he liked it. And Yuuko could be trusted. She had aided him numerous times in the past and was well compensated for her services.

He stared down at the black taffeta once more. It was the perfect disguise. He doubted that even Doumeki would recognise him if they stood face to face. Yuuko was right. He could do this.

But only this once. He wasn't going to make a habit out of it.

Yuuko sensed his compliance. A grin turned her lips up into a satisfied curve which made Kimihiro rethink his previous assertions as to her trustworthiness. Somehow it seemed that she was deriving far more enjoyment out of this than was strictly necessary.

"Well now." Yuuko's voice took on a bright tone that had him eyeing her warily. "Now that's cleared out of the way, let's get down to business."

Kimihiro eyed the items of clothing held by Maru and Moro. There was more of it in the boxes and bags set near the door. It almost seemed that Yuuko had been planning this for a while. He tried to bolster himself with the knowledge that this was the only way, this was necessary to ensure that Doumeki didn't get mixed up in this latest problem.

It wasn't very convincing, even to him.

xXx

When Kimihiro returned to the mansion he found Hikideshi was waiting for him. The butler didn't even blink as he saw the clothes the lord was wearing.

"My lord." A slight bow. "The second carriage has been prepared." He straightened. "I have taken the liberty of sending for Arden to act as your page. The Lady Minami would never venture out unattended."

Lady Minami. It worked. The line was very tenuously attached to his own and it would be less remarkable for the funds to come from his accounts to be used by a possible relative.

And Hikideshi was, as ever, correct. A widowed lady would at least have a page to accompany her when she ventured out in society. At least with Arden, the carriage ride would be somewhat more bearable.

He winced. It had been a long time since he'd had to take the second carriage. It was less warded than the primary one, bare of the elaborate silver and gold scrollwork. That was in part the reason why he never used it - it didn't have the full protective capabilities. While the ancient carriage had been constructed for the founder of the line, who had possessed a similar constitution to himself, the secondary carriage was the one that had been most used by the Watanuki line since that time. It had in fact been the carriage most used by his parents-

"My lord?" Hikideshi was eyeing him with concern. "Would it be best if I sent a message to -"

"No." Kimihiro's reply was firm. He wasn't about to let his own weakness be the cause of harm to others. Arden's presence was enough for this venture. Any other intervention would only be more dangerous for those that aided him. Arden's late father had been a potential exorcist before his demise and some of that potential, watered down by his mother's blood, had been passed onto his son. As a result Arden had only a slight warding power - enough that he was able to block some of the side effects that Kimihiro usually suffered but not enough to draw the attention of inhabitants of the second world. So while it wasn't the most optimal of situations, it was the safest for all concerned.

Hikideshi stared at him silently for a moment before stepping aside and gesturing to the foyer. It was an acquiescence, though not an entirely happy one. The butler wasn't happy with the situation but in the face of circumstances he couldn't come up with a better idea. And so he simply stood back and allowed it.

Kimihiro picked up his heavy skirts and made his way to the foyer. It wasn't easy. After several hours at Yuuko's shop he ended up wearing a pair of black hook and eye ankle-high boots that had more heel than he was used to. It was hard to balance in them and they pinched his toes. He was looking forward to when he returned and could kick them off.

To tell the truth, he just wanted the whole thing to be over as quickly as possible.

Arden was waiting in the foyer. The boy stood by the entrance of the mansion, carefully not standing on the outflung points of the ward that covered the foyer floor. He was dressed in trousers and a black coat over a dark grey vest with smoke patterns in black. It was a sombre assemblage that well-fitted the page of a mourning noblewoman. What didn't, however, was the uncertain expression he wore when he rose from his bow at their entrance. "My lord?"

Kimihiro lifted the obscuring black veil that cascaded over the brim of the plain black hat he wore. "Arden." He met the boy's gaze steadily, trying to gauge how the youth was feeling about the whole situation. "If you're uncertain about this, you can change your mind now."

"No, my lord." The boy straightened, squaring his thin shoulders. "I'm certain. After all you've done for us, this is the least I can do." His brows lowered over his dark eyes. "From what the others have told me, the lady has been casting people out of her lands." A determined note entered his voice. "I will do my best to shield you, my lord."

Kimihiro nodded, feeling a little unsettled at the show of devotion. "All right, then."

It was true that he had taken in a fair number of tenants onto his estates in the past few years. With what had been happening in the capital during the last few decades, those who were touched by the second world were becoming a hindrance rather than an asset. At best an annoying reminder of the outdated past, at worst a magnet for supernatural occurrences that were dangerous to all those around them. As a result, those landholders who had less scruples than property had taken to evicting what they referred to as 'tainted' tenants.

As his forbearers had before him, Kimihiro had moved to take them onto his lands. He had plenty of land under his control - his line had been established at the founding of the capital - and the addition of more tenants was well within his capabilities. It took little more than writing up the official documents that listed them as new tenants. But somehow, his new tenants had come to view his intervention as something extraordinary. Most of them threw themselves into their new role - the crop yield of the past few years had been rising steadily while other adjoining estates had seen a fall. A small core of them had also taken upon themselves to support him in his work - either to provide the manpower for his transportation or gathering information through the network of tenants and servants that spread through all of the estates. He often found himself at a loss to explain the loyalty they showed him.

Kimihiro lifted his hand to pull the veil down once more only to be stopped by Arden's suddenly movement. "He asked me to give you this." The boy's hand withdrew from the pocket of his jacket and offered a small cloth-wrapped bundle.

Kimihiro took it in his black satin-gloved hands and carefully unwrapped it. It was a small wooden carving, the polished surfaces glinting under the lights. The small piece of wood was carved in the shape of a small disk with four images flowing around a central image of seventeen point star.

The four symbolized images stood in relief. A koi curved around the bottom quarter, tail and head curved upwards. The head of the fish led to a coil of roots that moved up into a trunk and the spread branches of a cherry tree. In the top quarter the spreading branches of the cherry tree were overtaken by the tail feathers of a flying bird. The stylized nature of its form prevented its identification and its head was bent downward leading into the last image. Jagged forks of lightning descended from below the bird's beak and terminated just short of the koi's uplifted tail.

A representation of all four elements, interlocked and representing the four quarters, around the central point. The seventeen point star. It was a major ward. A portable representation that fairly hummed in his hands with the protections running through it.

"He's getting better." Kimihiro didn't even try to stop the fond smile that curved his lips. "How is his training going?"

Arden shifted, suddenly a little embarrassed to be addressed by his lord dressed as he was while wearing that smile. "Ryouta has been going to the Western Ward and is teaching him what he learns."

"That's good." Kimihiro glanced down at the miniature elemental arrangement. "When you return, tell him that while I cannot come see him, I wish that I could."

"My lord." Arden bowed again when he received the instructions. He was taking the task seriously as all the tenants did when it involved communication between their lord and the young man who sheltered among them.

Kimihiro nodded once more and rewrapped the small ward. For a moment he hesitated and then he tucked it into the small bag that hung from his wrist. Most ladies wore it over a shoulder but the lord had wrapped the long strap around his gloved wrist several times and grasped the opening in his gloved hand for good measure.

He had no intention of losing its contents.

With the ward tucked away, he lifted his hands to the hat he wore and pulled the black veil down once more. It was made up of several thick layers of netting which, with the small reflective fragments running through it, was enough to obscure his face. But despite the concealment, it was still fine enough for him to see through even if those who observed him couldn't easily do the same.

The action seemed to remind Arden of his role. Straightening, he offered a solicitous arm as was proper for a page to aid his liege lady. Kimihiro lightly set a hand on the offered elbow. With the slight obscuring of his vision through the veil and his cumbersome shoes, he was glad of the support.

No doubt the uncertainly and his reliance on Arden would be read as the weakness left by the grief and illness that he was portraying.

He nodded to Hikideshi and the butler opened the front door. Keeping the same pace as Arden, Kimihiro made his way out of the mansion, leaving the powerful wards. His gratefulness at the boy's presence, rising through the ordeal of getting down the stairs (he was _never_ going to wear shoes like these again), sky-rocketed when they finally left the serpent-warded steps and the shadow of the two unicorns. Even with the primary boundary wards running along the edge of his estate, he could always feel his vulnerability as he left the mansion's wards. But now with Arden's warding presence and the ward in his bag, the sensation was significantly lessened.

It wasn't the same as when he accompanied the prince but-

He shook his head. The Keeper was the last person he wanted to be thinking of. Every time he did, the man seemed to pop up like a cursed coin.

And having Prince Doumeki showing up now was the last thing that he wanted.

Arden carefully guided him across the few steps of the gravel drive that separated them from the waiting carriage. Kichirou, who was once again acting as footman, blinked a few times at the sight of his lord dressed as a mourning noblewoman and then moved hastily to open the carriage door.

Itsuki, Kimihiro's usual driver, didn't even look twice. He'd been a hackney driver in the city before his latent abilities came to the fore and put an end to his livelihood. Swerving to avoid spirits and creatures of the second world hadn't endeared him to his passengers. In the service of the reclusive lord, however, seeing spirits was only an asset. In all the years he'd served Kimihiro he'd seen things that people had never heard of let alone dreamed about. Seeing his lord in a dress seemed to pale in comparison.

But for the younger footman, the sight was still unnerving. Kichirou averted his eyes with a slight blush as he let down the step and held out a hand to help his lord into the carriage as he would have any other lady.

Getting a bit embarrassed himself, Kimihiro accepted the aid and managed to get inside without ripping his skirts or catching them on the open door. He managed to sort them out with some help from Arden who had clambered in after him.

Once they were settled, Kimihiro rapped on the overhead of the carriage with a satin-gloved fist. The carriage rocked as Kichirou leapt up to the footboard behind the cabin and Itsuki set the horses into motion.

Kimihiro set himself to endure the ride, hands wrapping tightly around the portable ward and the pocket watch he could feel through the dainty cloth bag. At least with Arden in the cabin he would have no choice but to hold himself in check. He would not disgrace himself by showing how much being in this carriage upset him.

It was the only way.

He clung to the thought as the carriage smoothly moved down the drive. It had been repaired after the incident and was in much better condition than the ancient carriage. But Kimihiro hated to use it.

It was the only way.

Eyes on the mansion, the prince might have, but it was certain that none of them were on the grounds. At best the arrival and departure of the carriage would only be viewed as the coming and going of another client seeking Lord Kimihiro's aid.

xXx

So much for this being a side story. (rolls eyes) I just can't resisting throwing in more elements that haven't been covered properly before. Oh well, you guys don't care, do you?

xXx


	16. Black Widow II

Supernatural Entanglements:

Black Widow

II

Kimihiro knew things were going to go badly as soon as he stepped out of the carriage. It wasn't enough that the carriage ride had let him in a cold sweat and slightly nauseous. The ridiculous purse that Yuuko had forced on him got caught on handle of the carriage door. And with the unfamiliar shoes, the lord found himself heading face-first for the dirty cobbles.

Arden had seen the looming disaster and reached out to grab his lord from behind. His move was too late though and it was only the quick movement of Kichirou as he turned his grip on the open door to a hastily catch that saved Kimihiro from public humiliation and an abrupt end to his task.

"M - milady." Kichirou caught himself at the last minute. He lifted Kimihiro and set him down again on his feet. "Are you unharmed?"

Embarrassed, Kimihiro settled on a nod. Arden, who had scrambled out of the carriage, hastily unravelled the tangle of the purse strap on the ornate handle. As soon as the small bag swung free, he offered a hand to help guide his lord up the stairs.

Kimihiro accepted it, careful not to clutch the boy's arm too tightly. After recovering from the near-disastrous fall, the lord had become aware of the unsettling atmosphere of the building the carriage had stopped in front of. It was hard not to the cling to the boy as an impromptu shield.

The performance hall was set on a large block back from the main street. The boundary of the land was marked by a tall brick wall with undulating dragons carved along the edges of the stone slabs than capped it. The area within the wall was divided into three parts: the sprawling cobbled yard where carriages would drop off their passengers, the performance hall and the extensive gardens that lay beyond them.

The structure housing the theatres and concert halls was a large rectangular building. The façade was dominated by a large portico that stretched nearly three quarters of its face. Marble columns supported the portico roof and pigeons peered out from their roosts on the coiling dragons that clung to the top of the columns. Twenty one steps, laid out in three tiers of seven, led up to the entrance shadowed by the portico.

But despite the unbroken wards that still faintly marked the masonry, the structure didn't feel right. It was akin to biting into an apple and finding that the inside was bitter. It was nothing overtly harmful but it left a residual tinge that lingered on the edge of his consciousness.

Kimihiro ignored the sensation as best he could and concentrated on entering the building.

The shoes resumed their pinching as they ascended the stairs. Kimihiro took them slowly, unwilling to risk the chance of falling again. Arden noticed his difficulty and set his arm to act as a support. Lifting his skirts in one hand, Kimihiro managed the last of the short flights and slowly moved to the entrance.

He glanced to either side as they moved between the towering columns. The portico was filled with shadows, the only light a few slanting rays that slid across the marble floor. Even so, there was no problem spotting the doors leading into the building – their red frames blended with the shadows but the large panes of glass set in their top halves glittered. Kimihiro headed towards the double doors that were set in the centre. The long twining form of the dragon which clung to the frame suggested that this was the proper entry.

One of the doors swung open before they could reach it, a uniformed attendant holding the door open for the lady and her page. Kimihiro gave a small nod of his head in thanks and carefully stepped inside, Arden's arm still providing support. They paused just within the foyer and Kimihiro took in their surroundings with one glance.

The entrance of the theatre hall was an imposing space. It was a long rectangular area, rising to the full height of the building and running the width of the portico. Crystal chandeliers hung high above, casting light down onto the polished wood than gleamed from the floor. A visitor entering the row of doors leading in from the patio was confronted with the polished reception desk that dominated the empty space. It was flanked to either side by a set of large double doors. One of the doors to the left was open, revealing a corridor that led deeper into the building. Enormous paintings, conversions of images from ancient scrolls to a canvas medium, hung on the huge expanse of wall above desk and doors. Uniformed attendants stood along the wall beside the doors and behind the desk, light reflecting off the gold embroidery of their red coats.

It was an older building and had some protections. Faded ward markings were set in each corner of the foyer, subtle mouldings set at the roof and floor. Nothing compared to the protections of his estate but adequate for a building such as this. It was not a personal abode but instead had to cater for the constant flow of people that moved through its door. As such it was primarily set to guard against evil spirits.

The evil of people was quite a different matter.

They slowly moved towards the desk, the widow holding tightly to her page's arm. Kimihiro stopped some steps away, however, to let Arden make the necessary enquiries. He intended to talk as little as possible.

Arden ensured that his lord was alright with a glance as the black satin-coated fingers lifted from his arm. At the slight nod he received, he approached the lobby desk and the attendant who waited behind the counter. The youth played his part well. There was no sign that he hadn't been a page for most of his life.

"Lady Minami has come for Lady Fukao's auction." Arden tilted his head slightly back to where Kimihiro stood behind him as he slid the official documents for registering across the desk. Hikideshi had already attended to the matter and handing over the signed and sealed documents verifying a line of credit was all that was left. "The Lady has been unwell and it is not good for her to be standing so long."

The attendant grasped the situation at once. Even as he accepted the documents, he glanced over at one of the uniformed men who stood along the wall. The young man caught the glance straight away and came over, sinking into a deep bow as he approached Kimihiro.

"If you would follow me?" He waited until Arden had once more offered his arm to the widow and began to lead them at a slow pace down the corridor which was visible through the open doorway.

Thick red carpet muffled their steps as they traversed the dark stretch. Ornate iron lamps hung from the walls, creating a dim, intimate atmosphere that was not unlike venturing into a cave. Tapestries, wall paintings and busts, all linked to past performances in some way, sat in moulded alcoves in the walls to either side. With the dimmed chandeliers above, it was much like the hidden treasures of some bandits' den.

With the way his high-heeled boots kept sinking into the thick carpet, however, Kimihiro found himself wishing that some of the aesthetics had been cut in favour of practicality. He knew why the tasteful display had been created but he did wonder what was the point if the very length of the hallway gallery was so long that one wanted to pass through it as quickly as possible. The question lingered in his mind as it soon became clear that their destination was not going to be reached as quickly as he had hoped. All too many of the elegant doors they passed were closed, clearly not the place where the auction was going to be held.

They finally came to a pair of open doors leading into a large concert hall. Lanterns similar to those along the corridor were set along the wall, lighting the fan of seats that was cut in half by the centre aisle. A small stage lay at the far end of the slowly sloping hall, a podium and screens set before it. A few people, mostly noblewomen, were already present, sitting in small groups and talking. Their guide led them to one of the rows towards the back, obviously not wanting to strain Lady Minami's health. "The auctions will begin in half an hour. My lady, if you need anything please send your page."

Kimihiro nodded silently and sank down slowly into a seat removed somewhat from the aisle, not needing to feign relief in his body language. The shoes were pure torture.

Arden sank down in the seat besides him, closest to the aisle. With the boy seated where he was, someone would either have to walk in front of him or loop around the long way, walking down the outermost aisle, to take a seat in the same row. With the size of the hall, it was unlikely. Kimihiro thought the chances were good that they would be undisturbed and others would keep their distance. The widow's weeds and fact that they had chosen to sit apart was a clear signal that they wished to be left alone. Most well-bred individuals would heed the silent advisement.

Most.

After several minutes of sitting quietly, watching the flow of people slowly filling the hall, their isolation was abruptly broken.

"Oh my." A rather large middle-aged woman dressed in a pale lavender gown had stopped at the end of the aisle. "My dear you don't mind if I join you, do you?" Without waiting for a reply, she began making her way past seats. Arden shrank back to allow her passage and Kimihiro edged back a far as he could in his seat to grant her enough room to pass.

As lavender skirts brushed his own, Kimihiro felt a sinking sensation take hold of him. He had hoped to remain largely undisturbed but that hope seemed largely dashed now.

"Oh." The lady sank a down in a seat next to the widow. "I do believe that they are making these seats closer together these days." The lady glanced down ruefully at herself. "Either that or I have gotten too used to box seats." She looked around the hall with interest. "A novel idea to be renting a music hall for an auction, though. Lady Fukao is a forward-thinking woman."

Some of Kimihiro's dread receded. He had thought that the gregarious woman was going to try to strike up a conversation with him. But it seemed that she was quite happy to talk without hearing anything from him. It might be that he wouldn't have to say a word.

The lavender gowned woman turned to her seating companion. "I must say that I haven't seen you at any previous gatherings organized by Lady Fukao."

"Lady Minami has been unwell recently." Arden moved to prevent any difficulty.

"How dreadful." The lady's eyes widened. "Oh don't tax yourself, my dear, by any means. You just rest yourself - I am well able to entertain myself. We Dexters are quite adept at that."

Kimihiro inclined his head slightly. To indicate some agreement or something. He wasn't quite sure what to do at this point. Conversation had always gotten him out of difficulties in society in the past. Now, without his voice, he found that his choices were limited.

"You poor thing. Having lost your husband and now being unwell." She shook her head, a stray wisp escaping from her simple coif of gold and silver hair and trailing with the movement. "You have certainly missed out on much of what has been happening."

Kimihiro slid his gaze to Arden. The boy's eyes were slightly wide as he met his lord's gaze. Most of the nobles he had interacted in the past behaved somewhat... differently.

Lady Dexter had continued talking through the silent exchange. "His Highness was so handsome at the dinner held at Lord Adachi's last week."

One of Kimihiro's eyes twitched. Not even dressed as a mourning widow and attending a private auction, could he get away from the man.

"Oh but you couldn't attend, being in mourning, you poor dear. How about I tell you everything? That way it will be as if you missed out on nothing at all." The lady let out a trill of laughter that she no doubt thought was charming but made Kimihiro want to run for the nearest exit.

He looked around surreptitiously. Aside from the slightly strained look on Arden's face, there was no one paying attention to the conversation that the lady was one-sidedly participating in. There was no way he could make some polite excuse and escape.

He was trapped.

"-and then Lady Adachi came in and announced that there was a special guest for the evening." The lady let out a trill of delight that she had no doubt made when the announcement had been made that night. "Imagine. His Highness attending such a small gathering." Another trill that had Kimihiro's hands twitching as he restrained them from rising to block his ears.

He barely refrained from flinching as the woman leaned forward and laid a familiar hand on his forearm. "And in such handsome attire!" Her voice lowered to a conspiring whisper. Which meant it was only slightly less loud than her normal voice. "But not as handsome as the lord himself. I've always said that a broad set of shoulders and long legs made a perfect man." She winked. "If only more of the lords would show off their strapping forms so."

Kimihiro smiled weakly, starting to surreptitiously lean away from the woman. He only hoped that she wasn't going to continue with that train of thought. There were some things he just didn't want to know.

Another disturbing trill. Lady Dexter patted his arm and leaned back. "Oh my dear. It's a pity that you're in mourning." A considering look. "When the time comes you must allow me to help you find your next husband. You're not an unpretty sort - you hips are a little on the narrow side but I'm sure that we could find you someone suitable."

Oh god. Kimihiro's gaze darted to Arden, who was looking as frightened as he felt.

"But back to the prince." One hand pressed to her ample bosom. "He was wearing one of those beautiful suits he usually wears. You know, the ones with the patterned vests and the long embroidered knee-length jackets." The fingers of her hand waved vaguely in the air. "It was cherry blossoms this time. Delicate branches with small cherry blossoms running up the sleeves. Very daring for autumn. I told him as much during dinner."

Kimihiro was beginning to sympathize with Doumeki. If Lady Dexter was any indication of the people he had to associate with, it was no wonder that he was so socially inept.

Lady Dexter let out a little sigh. "It's just a pity that His Highness doesn't smile."

Kimihiro blinked. The man was smirking nearly every time he saw him (1). Sometimes it was hard to imagine him without the annoying expression.

Lady Dexter's face brightened. "But no doubt when he meets the right lady we'll finally see it." She smiled at Kimihiro. "No doubt."

Maybe if he got married, the man wouldn't bother him so much.

Lady Dexter continued to prattle on about the dinner party and the conversation she'd had with the prince when she'd cornered him after dinner. Kimihiro had to admit it gave him a different perspective of the prince. He was beginning to see why the man was so rude.

If Kimihiro had possessed the same lack of manners he wouldn't be caught here right now.

Thankfully, the auction wasn't too far away from beginning. A veritable flood of people entered the hall as it drew close to opening. Lady Dexter cheerfully gave him a running commentary on the lineage and fashion of the most prominent.

Most of the attendees avoided them. It seemed that Lady Dexter's verbosity was well known and many people avoided her. It made Kimihiro feel somewhat sorry for her. He knew what it felt like to be shunned and for an older woman such as Lady Dexter, it was undoubtedly a greater blow. She seemed to thrive on conversation (or at least talking) and from the way she warmed to him he began to gather that she was rather lonely.

It made him feel bad about the thoughts he had been having earlier. He began to pay more attention to her words, interjecting a silent nod every so often. He found that, with his long absence from society, he was not familiar with all the faces that he saw. Something that Lady Dexter was remedying without his asking.

There was one person, however, that Kimihiro didn't need Lady Dexter to identify. The sudden cold feeling that shot through his gut, suddenly cutting off his breath, was enough to tell him that the lady had arrived. Arden, noticing his difficulty, reached out and laid a hand on his arm. It relieved the feeling enough that he could breath somewhat normally.

"And there is Lady Fukao!" Lady Dexter leaned forward. "Oh and she's wearing that lovely silver dress again. It reminds me of Her Majesty's coronation gown. It has the exact same shade."

Kimihiro had to admit that the light-coloured gown set off the lady's naturally dark looks. The soft colour emphasized the slightly darker skin, the dark depths of her eyes and the black fall of her hair. But that was about all it did for her. The coil of dark threads that bore a resemblance to barbed wire more than anything tended to detract from the pale garment's other charms.

He eyed the flexing coils, noting how they sensed out eagerly at any of the lords that stood nearby. They would stretch out and lightly scratch several millimetres out from their target. Often they would simply slide away again but once or twice they left a trail of bleeding red in their wake, as if an artery had been severed and a jet of blood was frozen in the air. The lady's eyes always seemed to take notice of the individuals on which the coils had this effect.

It seemed that Yuuko was right. Lady Fukao was a black widow.

Along with sight, there were several skills that allowed one access to the second world. Most of them were defences against the inhabitants of the overlapping world but some concentrated on manipulating the energy of one's own spirit for a variety of uses. What Lady Fukao was doing was a case of the latter.

The black coils that searched the hall were a manifestation of her own spirit. In this case a seeking, ever-avaricious ambition and greed that left traces of tainted black in the air behind her like some foul wake. The barbed coils were essentially reading the people that they touched, searching for signs of weakness and ripping open access points in potential victims.

And from the way the lady took notice of those the coils inflicted damage on, she was perfectly aware of what she was doing.

As the lady passed down the aisle, the coils turned and surged towards him. As the jagged threads cut through the air, Kimihiro instinctively clutched the bag that held the carved wooden ward that he had been given that morning.

The barbed coils halted and twisted in the air several feet away. After a few moments they retreated. Lady Fukao hadn't even glanced in his direction. It seemed that she hadn't noticed anything was amiss.

"My dear, are you alright?"

Kimihiro turned to see that Lady Dexter was eyeing him with some concern.

"Shall I call for some refreshments?" The sentiment was genuine and Kimihiro couldn't help the faint smile that crossed his lips as he shook his head.

Lady Dexter shook her head. "Well tell me if you need anything, my dear. It wouldn't do for you to get more ill than you already are." She leaned forward and peered at what she could see through the veil. "You are already awfully pale. Fresh air and sunshine is what you need. You have probably been cooped up inside for a long time and need to get out and stroll through the gardens."

Kimihiro smiled faintly at her words. If only she knew. But if the older woman knew who he was, it was doubtful that Lady Dexter would be talking to him, let alone sitting in the same row of seats.

Lady Fukao's arrival signalled the start of the auction. A gentleman in the uniform of the performance hall staff stood up behind the podium and began to open the proceedings. He might as well have been wearing the lady's livery with the praise he spouted.

Kimihiro paid little attention to his words, more interested in observing the lady and the clique of nobles that had settled around her.

"-and so today, Lady Fukao has graciously donated a collection from her estates in order to raise money for this worthy cause." He stopped to bow to the lady and a round of applause started up in the hall. With protestations of modesty, the lady allowed herself to be urged to her feet to accept the social approval which was gathering in volume.

Kimihiro's hands remained motionless in his lap. He was watching the black coil's seeking undulations against the backdrop of the lady's pale dress. Their seething motions belied the faint blush that was colouring the lady's pale face.

Finally the applause died down and the lady sank back into her seat, accompanied by the well wishes of those who surrounded her. The man at the podium resumed his speech and finally wound down to begin the descriptions of the first set of items.

Kimihiro listened intently. He was here for several items that were listed on the lady's catalogue. Though the lady was well aware of her own skills, it seemed that she was completely oblivious to the nature of some of objects that had come under her ownership at the death of her many husbands. If the situation had been otherwise, she would never be parting with them.

But her ignorance gave Kimihiro a chance. Not only to retrieve several objects that were potentially dangerous to any who might have otherwise bought them today but to purchase some of the items that Yuuko had set him to find.

It was an opportunity that wouldn't come again and was well-worth the efforts he had gone through to get here today.

xXx

Several hours later, Kimihiro had won more than half of the items on his list. It had cost a substantial amount of money and had made the presence of the quiet widow another topic added to the whispers of conversation that ran as an ever-present undercurrent below the bidding. For most of the objects were rather odd, taken as a group. Especially when they were being bought by a widow who was quietly outbidding some of the wealthier attendees.

Kimihiro ignored it as best he could.

The seething emotions that roiled through the hall, though, were another matter. Even with the ward in the small bag on his lap and Arden's arm clutched underneath his hand, the seething mist of jealousy, greed and avarice that was building in the hall was still affecting him. He no longer had to try to pretend that he was ill. He was.

But Kimihiro stubbornly remained in his seat, despite the worried glances of Arden and Lady Dexter. He wasn't going to leave until he had what he had come for. Until then he would simply endure.

"And this latest item, a silver ewer from the Abukawa estate. Originally crafted in the period after the Foundation, this piece reflects the archaic ideals of the time."

An assistant held up the piece for the crowd's viewing and Kimihiro clutched a little tighter at the arm under his hand. By the surge in the twisting of the black mist in the hall, this was going to be a close bid.

But one that he would have to win.

The first bid was reasonable but soon rose. Large amounts of money were called through the hall as the bid was raised. Soon the field was narrowed to Kimihiro and two lords, the younger clearly trying to catch Lady Fukao's eye. As the price rose, the young man and Kimihiro were locked in a bidding duel. And it seemed that neither was willing to give up the prize.

"1,300 from the young gentleman. Do I hear another bid?" The auctioneer's eyes moved towards the black-clothed widow who sat further back in the hall.

Kimihiro winced at the latest call but lifted a satin-gloved hand to up the bid.

"1,400! 1,400 from the lady. Do I hear-"

Proceedings suddenly ground to a halt as the doors at the back of the hall were flung open.

Eyes and bodies turned to the source of the interruption. The perpetual whispers broke out into louder exclamations of surprise and people started getting to their feet.

Kimihiro sat still, trying to ignore Lady Dexter's excited trill at his side and the worried look Arden was giving him. An equal measure of resigned dread and an urge to see for himself waged within him. He finally gave into the urge and turned to look at who had arrived so late with such little regard for the disruption that their appearance would cause.

The figure standing within the hall entrance made him cringe even while a surge of anger ran through him.

Prince Doumeki.

xXx

1) Slight exaggeration but Kimihiro always exaggerates when it comes to Doumeki :D

LOL. You weren't expecting me to leave him out of things were you?

xXx


	17. Black Widow III

Supernatural Entanglements:

Black Widow

III

As Doumeki strode down the aisle (looking as if arriving the midst of proceedings was something he normally did) Lady Fukao rose from her seat. She wasn't alone. Most of the hall was standing at this point, looking like they wanted to mob the prince.

Doumeki curtailed the movement though. With his liveried servants following behind, he turned into an empty row and settled himself in one of the seats. A curt gesture of one hand indicated that he wished for the auction to continue. The murmur increased throughout the hall at the action but the crowd slowly sat down, taking their seats once more.

Even if the glances and whispers continued.

The auctioneer glanced uncertainly at Lady Fukao who must have made some sort of affirmative gesture for the auctioneer started up where he had left off. "The last bid was with the lady. Is there any answering bid?"

There was a space of quiet. It seemed that the appearance of the queen's eldest son had distracted everyone from the bidding, even the young lord who had been so tenacious before the prince's arrival. The auctioneer looked around the hall for a few moments before he concluded that no one was going to contest the bid. "Very well then. Sold to Lady Minami for 1,400!." The ewer was waved away to be packaged and the next item was brought out.

Kimihiro sank back into his seat, loosening his hold on Arden's arm. He had gotten it. It was perhaps the most vital item on his list and he had been afraid that its price would have meant that he would have to leave the other items.

At least the prince's appearance was good for one thing.

"-imagine him coming here!" Lady Dexter had been talking all this time, unaware that Kimihiro hadn't been paying attention, lost in his thoughts. "Oh, and don't look now but His Highness is looking this way!"

Kimihiro turned his head. Even through the heavy veil he could see that Lady Dexter was right and the prince was looking at them. Or more precisely him. The gold eyes met his for a moment and he hastily turned away. What had possessed the man to show up here of all places?

"Oh my!" Lady Dexter was excited. Her hand moved to her bosom, fingers moving a nervous rippling movement. "Maybe he remembers me from Lady Adachi's dinner. I will have to see him at the end of the auction." She finally stopped craning around to look at the prince and turned around the Kimihiro. "And you too, my dear. Let me introduce you."

Kimihiro nearly choked. Getting any closer to the prince was the last thing on his mind at the moment. In fact he was considering leaving as soon as he could. If the last of the items that he was after were up for the bidding in the next set then he would take his leave in the interim that was planned. It was nothing more than a chance for socializing and sycophancy, anyway, and Kimihiro had no intention of attending if he had the choice. Thankfully the announcement of the next item forestalled any need for an answer to Lady Dexter's offer.

It was several minutes later before another object he was seeking turned up for auction. As soon as the small case was lifted from its box, Kimihiro could practically feel the potential for harm radiating off it. He waited until the bidding had opened and watched to see who else was entering the bidding. Those that entered first were likely to be attracted by the cigarette case but those who hung back and bid more seriously were more likely to know exactly what the small silver box was.

There were several bids. Kimihiro waited a few moments to gauge the patterns that were emerging. He took note of all the faces and then raised a slightly trembling hand to indicate he was entering the bidding.

"Lady Minami." Lady Dexter was serious as she peered at her seating companion. "You do not look at all well. Should I call for something?"

Kimihiro shook his head. It was true that the proceedings were wearing on him. The ward and Arden's presence were no longer adequate to ward off the swirl of emotions that now moved in ever-stronger currents now that Doumeki had arrived. Ambition. Lust. Covetousness. Greed. It was all a sickening swirl that grated along his nerves and caused his breath to come shorter. He had to concentrate firmly on what he was there for to prevent himself from giving into the growing urge to leave.

He couldn't. Not until he had it all.

A sudden gasp in the hall distracted Lady Dexter from further enquiries. The auctioneer paused and then nodded gesturing back to the seats further back in to the hall. "And His Highness makes an offer. Any counter bids?"

It took a moment for Kimihiro to realize what was going on. The prince was bidding on the cursed object. Whether he was oblivious to its dark nature or aware and attempting to win the piece to keep it out of other hands was not clear. But what _was_ clear was that the prince had a greater sum of funds at his disposal.

Kimihiro lifted a gloved hand.

A spike of noise rose in the hall as the auctioneer's next words made it clear that there was indeed a counter bid. Lady Dexter hissed in surprise and gave her companion a startled look as the widow dared to move against her prince. Kimihiro gritted his teeth against the building miasma in the hall and prayed that the stubborn man was simply being annoying and had no real intent to buy the cigarette case.

"-another bid by His Highness!"

The fool. Kimihiro closed his eyes briefly and took a shaking breath. What had possessed the prince to come here today? The entire reason for his covert presence was to prevent the man's involvement.

He raised his hand to make a counter bid.

Lady Dexter made a thrilled little noise at his side.

But it was soon drowned out by the hum of conversation that was filling the hall. People were turning and eyes were darting back to the black-gowned widow who was daring to continue in opposition to the prince. It was nearly unheard of. Anger joined the mix of emotions swirling in the hall and Kimihiro stiffened, Arden making a soft pained noise as his lord's fingers dug into his arm.

Kimihiro hastily loosened his grip, though he didn't dare let go of his hold entirely. The contact was all that was preventing him from disgracing himself.

Arden didn't look too well, either. Though warding was a latent ability, the boy also had a small degree of sensitivity. It was nothing compared to what Kimihiro possessed but it was enough that the dark churning mass in the air around them was starting to impact on the boy. If this continued they would have to leave, the rest of their aims unachieved. Kimihiro wasn't about to let the boy come to harm because of him.

The thought made him tremble with anger. Why did the prince always have to turn up at the worst possible moment? At this rate he was going to get himself killed before he was able to defend himself properly. Did the man have no common sense?

Kimihiro turned to regard the prince. The man was already looking at him, his blank face giving away nothing of what was passing through his head. Safely hidden behind his veil he glared at the impossible man. If he continued the way he was, Kimihiro was going to serve him stale pastries the next time he visited.

The prince blinked, as if he had heard some of the thoughts so forcefully directed at him. His brow creased slightly.

"Your Highness?" The auctioneer was inquiring about a counter bid.

Doumeki's eyes moved to the auctioneer and then back to Kimihiro. "I withdraw my bid."

A startled silence met his words. Kimihiro turned to face forward to the front of the hall, ignoring the stunned eyes that turned towards him. He had no idea what going through the man's mind nor did he want to know. All he wanted to do was get this over with and leave before the prince could get into more trouble.

xXx

The rest of the bidding went smoothly. Most of the items that remained on his list were curios that had a limited appeal in such modern times. Buying such objects was usually remarked upon just as selling them was not. Kimihiro won them fairly easily, the low cost making up for the exorbitant amount he had spent on the ewer.

Only on one or two of the purchases was there any stiff competition. But even that was no problem. After Doumeki entered a bid, most of the other bidders dropped out, leaving Kimihiro to be the winner when prince relinquished his bid at the end. The prince's curious actions made buzzes of conversation run through the hall every time and Kimihiro became aware that most of the audience was giving the both of them speculative glances.

It made him uneasy.

But it was all over now. He had acquired all the objects that he had set out to reclaim. It would make a large contribution to settling his debt with Yuuko and prevent a number of nasty incidents that may have occurred if some of the cursed objects had fallen into other hands.

And he had been able to observe Lady Fukao unnoticed. The lady's actions had not impressed him. It was clear that this was yet another matter which he would have to attend to in the near future.

The auction was only half way through its course. A break had been called for the midday luncheon which had been set up in the gardens and most of the nobles in the hall were making their preparations to retire outside.

Except for the group around the prince.

As soon as the proceedings had drawn to a close, a number of lords and ladies had immediately set upon the man. Even now Doumeki was sitting at their centre, nodding and occasionally opening his mouth but mostly remaining silent and staring watchfully.

It was almost enough to make Kimihiro feel sorry for him. But the pinching of his feet was a reminder of what the man was responsible for. It put his sympathy to an abrupt end.

Kimihiro had made up his mind to leave when Lady Fukao caught his eye. The woman had risen from her seat and was now making purposefully for the prince and the circle of nobles that surrounded him. It was threat enough that it made Kimihiro pause.

With smiles and soft conversation that belied the darkness that wrapped around her, the lady made her way closer to the prince. Kimihiro watched tensely as the barbed coils reached out once more. If they got too close he was going to summon Ryuu and be damned with the consequences.

But the black threads suddenly stopped. It was as if they had hit some invisible barrier several metres away from the prince. Lady Fukao seemed confused too. Kimihiro cold see a slight frown crease her brow as the dark tendrils searched from side to side but were still stopped by the same invisible force. Even a frantic, intensive effort by the grasping lines made no progress.

Kimihiro sank back into his chair, finally realizing what it was. It was the prince's innate warding powers. At the moment they were dormant, much like Arden's. The prince's soul manifested in an instinctive warding at all times that shunted forces of the second world aside. For those familiar with the phenomenon, he would be simply viewed as one of those few humans that was not worth the trouble.

But for spirits such as that which had been imprisoned in the Canar relic, it was abundantly clear what he was. Such spirits were rare - they were old and focused only on one thing: hunting the specific prey they enjoyed. But their very nature made it easy for them to see past the passive surface to the potential that lay dormant below.

Just as Lady Fukao would use her spirit to reach out into the second world and to touch those around her, so too could exorcists. That was the nature of the prince's innate potential. Once his powers awoke, the prince would be able to manipulate his own spirit in a similar manner. But in his case it would be to repel or destroy spirits.

And once that happened, he would become a threat to the malevolent entities of the second world and the target of all.

It was amazing that he hadn't already drawn their attention. But most of it could be explained by the curious shunting effect he was subconsciously emitting. It masked his true nature and pushed away any spirit he encountered before they could get a better read on him. If any had realized the truth then they would have begun to attack him by now.

That they hadn't made Kimihiro certain that Haruka had something to do with it.

Kimihiro frowned. It was impossible to tell when the prince would come into his powers or if he ever would. Such things varied from person to person and it would take certain circumstances for him to become aware of his own potential. But it _was_ certain that the man needed to be kept out of trouble. With his interference, half of the supernatural world would be aware of him - as a sensitive if nothing else - before the year was out.

And it would only make his protection and that of the Southern Ward all the harder.

Kimihiro grimaced, lifting a hand to observe the tremors that wracked it. He was going to have to do something drastic if that turned out to be the case.

Lady Dexter had fallen silent during the last hour of the auction, instead darting more and more concerned looks at her companion. Now she finally spoke.

"My dear, you look absolutely horrible. I insist that you let me help you to your carriage." She waved a gloved hand. "The attendants will have already had your purchases packed and loaded. You should just concentrate on looking after yourself."

Kimihiro was touched. It was clear that the woman had been wanting to seek out the prince for further conversation. But now she was discarding the opportunity in order to help a person who she had never met before this day.

Kimihiro got up, allowing Lady Dexter to help him. The prince was safe for now. As for the more mundane dangers of politics and ambition, Kimihiro had confidence that he could defend himself.

xXx

Doumeki watched the black veiled figure move out through the throng of lords and ladies. The widow was somewhat unsteady on her feet and moved slowly as if she was in the late stages of some illness. One slender hand rested tightly on the arm of the young boy that acted as her page. Her other arm was taken by the solicitous grip of a rather plump middle-aged lady in a pale lavender dress.

Doumeki recognized the older woman from the dinner he had attended at Lady Adachi's earlier in the month. Lady Dexter. She had been one of the few to talk to him who didn't have self-interest in mind. And it had been one of the most interesting conversations he'd had over the course of the entire evening.

He watched thoughtfully as the three of them made their way out from the crowd and headed towards the exit. He didn't know that Kimihiro was acquainted with the lady. But it was more likely that they had simply met earlier in the day. He doubted the older lady knew the 'widow' she supported was a man.

Kimihiro wasn't one to tell anyone what he was up to, let alone that he was going to venture out on a mission wearing widow's weeds.

Doumeki's lips twitched. He had been surprised when the thought had first crossed his mind. It had been an idle fancy that he had decided to test by bidding against Lady Minami to see what the reaction would be. Fancy had turned into suspicion when the counter bid had been made.

The death glare he had received had been the confirming factor. Even obscured by a heavy veil, there was no mistaking the familiar scorching heat that had been directed at him across the crowded auditorium.

Lady Minami was indeed the reclusive Lord Kimihiro.

It made him wonder exactly how many times the lord had slipped his notice and been moving about the city on his business.

"Your Highness?"

Doumeki turned to see that Lady Fukao was watching him intently.

As soon as his eyes turned to her the lady let her lips curve into a teasing smile. "Does our company bore you, Your Highness?" Her eyes moved across the hall to catch sight of the sombre black dress and flash of lavender that was nearing the exit. "Or perhaps something else has caught your interest?" Despite the smile, her eyes were dark snake-filled pits.

Other eyes turned to mark the withdrawal of the widow. Doumeki could practically feel the jealousy and barbed stares that rose from the women, and not a few of the men, that danced attendance around him.

"Do you have a previous acquaintance with the widow?" The omission of the widow's title told him exactly who it was before he turned to see. Lady Hishida. There hadn't been a social occasion he had attended where the lady hadn't approached him. Even now her breast brushed his sleeve in an action that was meant to look inadvertent but was all too calculated.

It was not the only one. Each of the ladies around him wore smiles that concealed minds that calculated every show of emotion, every reaction for their own social advantage. And all too many of them, married and unattached, kept a close eye on him, waiting for their chance. Doumeki was under no illusions. There wasn't one of them who wouldn't become his lover at the drop of a hat for the wealth and influence they thought it would gain them.

It was exactly for this reason that he avoided them as much as he could.

"No." He left it at that. Doumeki wasn't prone to explaining himself and anything more and they would think he was covering for something very different from the truth.

Still he could tell by the looks in certain eyes that it was a good thing that Lady Minami was a fiction. If the lady was a real person then she would have been in for an extremely hard time in society. Most of the ladies may have had limited power in their own right, but once they banded together against a common enemy they were able to destroy someone with very little effort. And a wealthy widow such a Lady Minami looked to be their next target.

It was a good thing they didn't know the truth of the matter. Entertaining as it would be to see Kimihiro cut them to size with a choice selection of cool words, Doumeki doubted the lord would appreciate being the subject of their spite. In truth the prince didn't like the thought, either.

Kimihiro already had enough to deal with at the moment.

The blunt denial had much of the effect that he had been hoping. The subject was dropped and the conversation moved onto other matters. Half-listening to the discussion of the plans for balls to be held the next spring, Doumeki kept an eye on several of the more persistent ladies. A number of them were still watching Kimihiro's retreat.

It might end up as a problem later, but for now he could ignore their social jostling and political manoeuvrings. Let them expend their efforts on a non-existent woman. Soon enough they would realize that there was no such person and that there had been a deliberate misguidance.

Though that would cause problems of its own. No doubt the whispers would escalate once the ladies couldn't find the source of their current vendetta. The true identity of the widow would become a subject of speculation for a time before finally dying down once the next scandal occupied their status-oriented minds.

It was fortunate that there was no way in which the truth of the matter would be discovered. Doumeki was the only one who watched Kimihiro's comings and goings. No one else would connect the visits of a widow with the disguised outing of the lord.

Doumeki let the flow of conversation continue without much input from himself. He would try to find out what was going on at breakfast tomorrow without revealing what he knew of today's events. He didn't want to let the lord know that he had been recognized while dressed as a mourning widow.

Doumeki had a feeling that the information would come in handy later.

xXx

LOL. And so it does, as you already know :D

Prince Doumeki has a very scary fan club. Very scary. Things will get... _interesting_ later on.

And the ewer? ...Its importance will become clear at a later date. But you can forget about it until then.

xXx


	18. Black Widow IV

AN: Ugh. And it was meant to end with that but then I realized that it would be a perfect opportunity to set some more things in motion. God help me...And you too, my poor readers...XD

Supernatural Entanglements:

Black Widow

IV

Kimihiro's feet were killing him by the time they had made their way out of the performance hall. He didn't need to feign needing the support of Arden and Lady Dexter. With the way his feet were aching, he couldn't walk properly.

"-staying for so long when you were in such a state." Lady Dexter had only grown more concerned as they walked and Kimihiro's unsteadiness had become more apparent. "No one would have minded an early withdrawal when you are so clearly ill."

Kimihiro darted a glance around the corridor which lead to the theatre-house's foyer. There were a number of people standing around in small clusters and even through the heavy veil, the lord could see the stares directed at their small procession. He didn't really need to see the glances though, with the dark tearing smoke that hazed the corridor like so many malevolent ribbons.

But it was at least better than the performance hall. Just as he had left the large open space, the atmosphere had become nearly unbearable. Hatred and envy had risen like some malevolent black mist, coiling up in a great choking mass that had made him stumble. He would have fallen if it had not been for Lady Dexter's firm grip on his arm.

The lady had been convinced that he was going to collapse any minute and had been inclined to sit him down but Kimihiro had tightened his grip on Arden, who was trembling under the force of the malevolent emotions, and forcibly dragged both of them out into the hall. The dark aura had lessened as soon as they had stepped through the doorway.

He feared that the surge which accompanied his exit had not been a coincidence. It seemed that his opposition to Doumeki during the auction had roused dangerous feelings among the prince's adherents. Apparently Lady Minami had earned the ire of society. He was going to have to retire the lady in order to deter further inquiries.

"Just a little further." Lady Dexter patted Kimihiro's gloved hand where it rested on her arm. "I sent Matthews ahead to insure that all your purchases were packaged correctly." A slightly bewildered look. "Though this concern over strange curios..." Her voice trailed off and she shook her head. No doubt putting the whole bidding fiasco down to grief and lingering illness.

The lady refrained from talking about it anymore, concentrating on getting the widow and her page out to their carriage. Kimihiro appreciated the silence on the matter. Despite her tendency to chatter, the lady still had polite courtesy. Even when it was clear that the woman was a fan of the prince, she refrained for asking why her companion had bid against him. Or why the prince had seemingly helped Lady Minami to purchase the items she had been bidding on.

The last worried Kimihiro. He was certain that the man didn't know who he was but the prince's actions were still strange. And it wasn't as if he could ask Doumeki what he was up to. He couldn't chance the prince linking Lady Minami and Lord Watanuki.

Most likely it was a misplaced sense of gallantry. Or what Doumeki thought passed for gallantry. Kimihiro wouldn't be surprised if the prince had no idea of the trouble he had just caused for Lady Minami. The man was hopeless when it came to polite interactions.

Kimihiro's thoughts on the prince were interrupted as they reached the foyer. A thin, almost gaunt man in livery stood in the foyer and bent in a bow that Lady Dexter immediately waved away with her free hand.

"Have you dealt with it all, Matthews?" The lady didn't wait for more than a nod. "And the carriage? Good. We can't have this poor dear catch a chill on top of everything else."

Kimihiro blinked at the sudden brisk tone. It was almost as if the cheerful, plump, motherly woman had been replaced by a commanding matriarch. He suddenly wondered if the lady had children.

But he didn't have long to dwell on the thought. The lady was suddenly steering him to the exit, the theatre house staff having snapped to attention to open the doors. One of them trailed after them as they started down the stairs in front of the building, nearby in case there was need of assistance.

Kimihiro was slightly surprised that the sight of the carriage filled him with relief. Though he hated using it, apparently it was better than the situation he was in now.

Or perhaps it was just the prospect of returning to the safety of his estate. Now that they were out of the building, the vulnerable feeling that always engulfed him whenever he left the protection of the wards returned. Not even the presence of Arden at his side or the ward in his ridiculous wrist bag could dispel that.

Distracted by the uneasy, exposed feeling brushing across his shoulder blades, Kimihiro stumbled when the low caw broke through the silence of the yard.

For a fraction of a second it seemed that the three of them were going to fall down the steps. But Kichirou, who had been waiting at the carriage door, rushed up the last steps and caught Kimihiro before he could drag Arden and Lady Dexter with him.

"M-my lady!" Kichirou released his hold on Kimihiro's waist and hastily helped him back to his feet. Kimihiro shakily straightened, a black gloved hand digging into the footman's arm.

The caw sounded again and Kimihiro slowly turned to locate the source of the sound.

A crow sat perched on the end of the stair rail several metres away. It tilted its head, scraping its beak on the rough stone, clearing something from the hard black length.

For a moment Kimihiro hoped that it was a simple crow. There were a large number of them within the city. They had mostly lost their fear of humans and they usually came and went as they pleased. It was possible that this one was here by chance.

As if it had heard the thought, the crow stopped cleaning its beak. For a moment it seemed as if it was an idle movement. But then its head tilted to the side and one milky pale eye set itself firmly on the lord.

For a moment lord and crow stared at each other. Then suddenly the bird launched itself into the air, heading for the waiting carriage.

For a moment Kimihiro feared that it would touch the vehicle. But at the last minute it swerved, passing perilously close to the hardened black roof. It cawed loudly as it clawed higher into the air and disappeared over the wall of the theatre house gates.

"Are you alright, my dear?" Lady Dexter had come to stand beside him. She looked shaken by the near fall. But what she could see through the veil seemed to frighten her more. She turned to Kichirou. "You! Help the lady into the carriage before she collapses!"

Kichirou complied, not even hesitating to take his lord by the waist once more and lift him bodily into the carriage. Kimihiro came to himself once inside and began to shakily shift his skirts so that he could sit more easily. Arden, who had hastily clambered in after him, immediately began to help.

Lady Dexter stood in the open door. She leaned in, reaching up a hand to pat Kimihiro's knee through the skirts. "Take care of yourself, my dear." Her pale green eyes were worried. "I will come and visit you when you are feeling better."

Before Kimihiro could even think of a reply, verbal or otherwise, the lady nodded sharply to Kichirou who shut the door firmly. The footman leap up to the footstep at the back and Itsuki set the horses into motion without waiting for the signal from his lord.

Kimihiro peered out of the window as the carriage left the drive. Lady Dexter remained at the bottom of the steps, her servant standing a few steps behind her. One white-glove hand rose as she caught sight of the movement behind the window and then the carriage turned out of the gates and she was gone.

Kimihiro sat back into his seat and closed his eyes.

Inside the city. The crow had been inside the city.

"My lord?" The voice was hesitant.

Kimihiro's eyes opened. "Are you alright, Arden?" The boy had held up admirably under all he had been forced to endure.

Arden nodded. "I'm fine. But-" He trailed off, looking nervous.

Kimihiro kept silent, letting him speak as he wished.

The boy suddenly looked up, eyes earnest. "You're in danger, my lord. You should call him to your side. He's been studying non-stop ever since that day. Surely he can aid you better than we can." He looked crestfallen as he said the last words. But he was determined, nonetheless.

Kimihiro shook his head. "It's too soon." He lifted the bag still wound round his wrist and reached into the limp black bag. There was a faint clicking noise as he retrieved its contents and held them out on a black satin-covered palm.

Broken wood. The carved ward had been split in two.

xXx

"Did you find anything of interest at the auction, my lord?" Riku inquired politely as he took the prince's coat. He gave no indication that his lord's abrupt departure in midst of the proceedings within the second wall of the Ward had caused any inconvenience. Or any sign that he adhered to the belief that an auction should have rated somewhat lower than the rites for the departure of a respected parishioner.

Doumeki surprised the aide with a slight smile. "It was interesting."

Riku looked somewhat resigned. It had been a while but whenever something got interesting, the prince usually pursued it relentlessly. "Did you find what you were looking for?"

The smile widened a fraction more.

Riku's resigned expression deepened. The prince was in an uncommonly good mood. It boded ill for the chances of his duties being uninterrupted in the future.

"Tea has been laid out in the study, my lord."

The prince nodded in acknowledgement and left the foyer, walking in the direction of the room, the faint smile still in place.

Riku left out a silent sigh as he regarded the coat in his arms. But slowly a smile creased his lips. It had been too long. It was about time his master had found something to live for again.

xXx

Doumeki sat behind his desk, staring at the small box that sat on its gleaming surface.

It had been an impulse buy.

He had decided to stay after Kimihiro had left. Some instinct had led him to endure the constant vying for his attention, the attempted seductions and the sly currying of favour. The entire thing usually had him anxious to leave as soon as possible but the image of Kimihiro's reaction when he eventually revealed that he had seen the lord in a dress had helped him through it.

It wasn't until after the luncheon break that he realized why he had stayed. After several lots had been auctioned, Doumeki realized that he was looking for something. A gift to be precise.

Despite Kimihiro's assertions to the contrary, he wasn't a totally lost cause when it came to social interaction. He certainly wasn't so ill-mannered that he wasn't aware of his own country's customs. He knew that he would need a gift when the time came.

As soon as the silver glinted under the lighting, Doumeki knew that he had found the right piece. It suited Kimihiro right down to the faint warding marks that were still visible on it's worn surface.

"My lord?"

It was Riku. The aide came into the study at his nod and handed over a small envelope of creamy vellum. "From your pocket, my lord."

Doumeki looked at him sharply, but the aide was blank-faced. The prince turned over the compact missive and read the cursive writing on the front. _Your Highness_.

Doumeki frowned. With all the people crowding around him, anyone could have slipped it into his pocket.

He slit the wax seal with a thumb nail and unfolded the letter.

_Your Highness,_

_Should you ever feel the inclination to accept a private invitation, I am always available._

_Your most devoted servant,_

_Takako._

Doumeki frown deepened. Lady Hishida. It seemed that the woman was no longer content with more subtle overtures and had decided to become bolder.

He glanced at the box on the desk and suddenly stood up.

"My lord?"

Doumeki ignored the aide and walked over to the fireplace. He stared into the shifting flames for a moment then dropped the letter into their depths. In a few moments the vellum was curling in on itself as the flames ate at the edges, white turning into dark brown.

The prince waited until the letter had been entirely consumed before returning to his desk. He lifted the small box from its surface and tucked it into a drawer. He then turned the Riku, who had been watching the whole thing intently. "Has Lord Woodrow's report about the incidents at the quay arrived yet?"

"No, my lord. But the documents you requested from the central shrine have arrived-"

Both men were soon deep in dealing with the matters at hand. The letter forgotten ash in the fire.

xXx

See, Lady Dexter's a nice lady. A bit scary at first but nice :D

And Doumeki...good lord, Doumeki is making plans. Extremely long term plans. Scary man.

And yeah. There is A LOT there. (mutter) Side story my arse...the carriage, the crow, Syaoran, the letter (and that's just to mention a few). But now you should have picked up some hints and foreshadowing as to what will happen in the future (even if you don't know what they mean. LOL :). And a fair few backstory hints (of course :).

Anyway I hope you enjoyed the lighter mood of this piece. The next instalment, Painted Fate, will be darker. But you will get a fair bit of information so persevere. And it will lighten up a bit after that. Well, it should…

xXx


	19. Blood & Iron

Warning: Slight gore and decomp. If you have pets you might find this one a bit distressing.

AN: Okay first off, this doesn't have any 104. But it does involve other characters you've met and some you haven't. It's a short piece that is running in the background of the events that are going on in the main story line.

That said, it does have some answers to what is going in the capital. Some. There are more questions, raised too, of course :D And events here, and their aftermath, will be referred to for a while before they come up in the main story line. So if you're here for the plot read on. If you're here for 104, wait till the end of the month and the next instalment.

Blood & Iron

"Great." The large man crossed his arms and glared at the people passing by. They took one look at the angry red eyes and the well-muscled arms tensing in anger and moved to the other side of the street.

Not that they wouldn't be avoiding him anyway. Most people tended to avoid the wardens unless they had some business with the patrolling forces. And there was no mistaking that the tall red eyed man was one. If his manner didn't give it away, the uniform he wore, certainly did.

While black ankle-length coats were not uncommon in the cooler seasons, there was no mistaking that what the tall man wore was a warden's uniform. The upper half hugged his body with a high collar at the neck and skirts flared out at the hips to allow for a full range of movement. It was fastened by the distinctive three silver buttons on the right side of his chest. Only wardens wore this style of coat in the colder months.

The silver embroidery that ran over the garment indicated which quarter of the city he served. On the right side of his chest, next to the three silver buttons, sat an elongated version of the Doumeki crest, two crossed arrows in silver. It marked his service to the line of the Southern Ward just as the silver embroidery that decorated hem, cuffs, and collar in patterns of rising mist symbolized the Southern Quarter.

"Come on Kuro-tan! It could be fun." The large man's shorter companion gave him a cheerful smile, pointing index fingers towards his mouth in emphasis.

The deadly gaze turned to the blond-haired man wearing the same uniform as himself. "Exactly what part of tracking down dead animals is fun?" They'd spent the most of the last month following up on the reports of dead animals in the quay district and Kurogane was getting sick of it. He'd had enough of reading reports and interviewing people.

His companion's hands fell and lids shielded pale blue eyes in a sly look. "What? Don't you like spending time along with me?"

"Oooh! Kuro-bun's in trouble!" The small ferret-like creature popped up on the larger man's shoulder. It began dancing in a spastic little shuffle on the broad shoulder. "Someone's in the dog house! Dog house!"

It dodged the large hand that reached up to grasp it with the agility of long practise and leapt to the smaller man's shoulder. "Mummy!" It cried shrilly. "Daddy's trying to molest me again!"

Veins bulged in the larger man's temple. "Shut it, you animated sausage! Or I swear, I'll flush you down the next public toilet I see!"

The creature ducked behind the slighter man's neck with a squeal, hiding in the golden strands of his hair. Though with it's black fur, it wasn't entirely successful.

"There, there." The blond soothed. "Daddy isn't going to hurt you." A wide grin. "He's just jealous." Fai reached up to pat the ferret creature and it smiled evilly at the other man as it received the attention.

Another bunch of veins popped and Kurogane stomped off ahead of them in order to stop himself from wringing the little monster's neck. He didn't want to give it the satisfaction of thinking that Fai was right.

Though with the taunting of "Jealous! Jealous!" drifting forward from behind him, it was very hard not to give into the temptation.

"We'll check the wharves first." It may have been a demeaning task but it was better than dealing with a sausage with legs. "It was the first place where corpses started showing up."

Fai reached his side and kept pace while seeming to stroll casually alongside the larger man's quick determined strides. The ferret had disappeared somewhere, probably down his coat. "Wasn't the first animal a dog?"

The larger man grunted. "That's what the reports said."

A playful smile crossed Fai's lips but his eyes were serious. "Then it looks like our man prefers the wharf as his dumping ground. Cats hang around the wharves, not dogs."

Red eyes slid sideways. "Dumping ground."

The other man's smile widened, a contrast with his cool eyes. "Why don't we see what else our man's been dumping in the area?"

xXx

Kurogane hated the wharves. They always smelt like fish guts and rotten fish. The flocks of seagulls that eyed everyone in the vicinity with hungry gold eyes didn't endear the place to him any, either. They kept reminding him of who was responsible for their current predicament.

The evil ferret in his arms shifted as if it could hear his thoughts. "Higher!" It demanded imperiously.

Kurogane shot a glare at Fai, who seemed delighted at what he took to be a scene of harmony between his partner and familiar. "Do I have to do this?"

Fai looped his arms across his chest with a bright smile. "Mokona can't get up that high with his short legs. Someone has to lift him up there and I'm too short."

Kurogane looked down at the furry bundle that curled in his arms. Its attempt to look cute was foiled by the evil glint in its eyes. The warden was tempted to simply get it up on the crate to get rid of it - preferably by throwing it there.

It opened its mouth to say something and Kurogane hastily lifted the furry body and set it on top of the pile of crates. The ferret smiled toothily down at him over the edge and then scampered out of sight.

"I'll never know why you didn't just take it back to the witch." He muttered to Fai, who had come over beside him and now leaned against a nearby crate. "What good is an animated sausage to a practitioner?"

Fai shot him an amused glance. "It's good to see you two are getting closer."

Kurogane flinched. "Closer? With that evil sausage? Having that thing draped around your neck is starting to addle your brain."

Fai merely grinned and said nothing.

The large warden found himself thinking over the situation worriedly. He couldn't be starting to tolerate the furry thing, could he? He'd put it on the crate to shut it up, not to help it - if the fur ball could leap up onto his shoulder from a standing start, then a couple of wooden crates wasn't going to be a challenge. And he hadn't fallen for its attempts to look cute-

Cute.

Kurogane made up his mind to wring the ferret's neck when it returned.

"Fai!" The familiar high-pitched voice rang out from above. The ferret was back and though it didn't have much in the way of facial expressions, the taut stance of its body screamed anxiety.

Fai pushed off from the crate and came to stand beside Kurogane. "Mokona?"

The little ferret shivered and made to leap down from the crate. But its foot slipped at the last minute and it would have ended up a very flat and messy bundle if Kurogane hadn't caught it in time.

"Mokona!" Fai leaned over the furry bundle in Kurogane's arms. Its small ears were flat as it hugged itself around the arms that held it.

"Bad things." The familiar said in a small voice. "Bad things. Bad things." It hid its head in the crook of Kurogane's elbow, burrowing into his coat. "Mokona wants to go home." Its fur was raised in little spikes of fear.

Kurogane surprised himself by laying a clumsy hand on the little ferret's back. He met Fai's gaze then looked at the forest of crates around them. "It looks like His Highness was right." His red eyes narrowed. "We've got something to investigate, after all."

xXx

After several minutes, Fai finally got Mokona to reveal the location of the 'bad things' it had found. The ferret refused to move from the position it had taken around Kurogane's neck, however, and the warden was forced to wear it like a furry feather boa or risk having his jugular opened by its grasping little claws.

Intent on any enquiry that might lead to action, Kurogane ignored Fai's sudden grin, the furry warmth around his neck and the occasional touches of a wet nose to his nape. Following the directions that Fai had translated from the ferret's fearful mutters, the warden soon found himself staring at the side of a large warehouse.

Kurogane frowned and flicked his gaze around the area. He spotted a dock worker sitting on a crate nearby and stalked over.

The man jumped as the warden's shadow fell over him, nearly dropping the sinker he was tying to his line. His gaze travelled up the warden's coat and stopped at his neck. He opened his mouth to make some comment but wisely shut it after a look at Kurogane's expression.

"The warehouse." Kurogane said abruptly. "Tell me about it."

The dock worker had obviously heard the unspoken threat accompanying that demand and hastily complied. "It stores the goods brought in by the merchant ship _Darter_." His eyes were irresistibly drawn back to the furry bundle wrapped around the warden's neck and only darted away again at the warning sound coming from the large warden's chest. "It's empty now. The _Darter_'s last cargo came in several months ago and was shifted soon after." He didn't seem able to resist and his gaze darted back to Mokona. Luckily for him, Kurogane was staring at the warehouse and missed the action.

Fai didn't, however, and moved to divert the worker's attention before the other warden noticed. "Who would we have to talk to in order to gain access?"

"That would be Lord Hinata. But he's currently - Hey!" The worker rose to his feet as Kurogane strode purposefully towards the warehouse. His annoyed expression turned to horror when the big man walked up to the warehouse entrance and kicked out savagely at the doors.

With a sharp splintering of wood, one of the doors caved in, hanging drunkenly off its hinges.

"Well I guess we won't have to bother Lord Hinata," Fai commented with a happy smile. He left the staring dock worker and strolled up to Kurogane's side. The larger man was unsuccessfully trying to open the door he had half-destroyed. The blond man watched him for a moment before finally speaking. "Those open out rather than in." He pointed out helpfully, gesturing to the hinges on the outside of the door.

Kurogane paused for a long moment, hands still grasping the remains of the broken door. With a savage move, he suddenly pulled the door outwards. It gave with a tortured groan, scraping across the hard ground and ending up half collapsing against the wall of the warehouse, hanging off one hinge.

Fai surveyed the wreck of the door and the newly opened doorway. A few jagged splinters hung from the door jam and the lock that was still attached to the other door. "Pweet-whoo! What would we go without you, Kuro-bun?" And so saying, he squeezed past the other man, brushing against him with a wink, and entered the warehouse.

Kurogane growled something under his breath that caused the ferret wrapped around his neck to bury its head under his coat, and followed.

xXx

The sound of a match broke the musty silence. A small light wavered briefly before the wick caught and then grew into a heavy glow. Kurogane gestured to the scavenged lantern. "What's the use of magic if you don't use it?" The thick dust in the air of the warehouse and the earlier incident with the door was making him disgruntled.

Of course the ferret sniffling down the back of his neck was also a contributing factor.

Fai was already peering around crates and into empty boxes, though. When it became clear that the blond man wasn't going to answer, Kurogane muttered something under his breath and started looking around himself.

The dock worker had told them the truth. The warehouse was mostly empty. Only a few scattered boxes were left near the entrance. Towards the back of the structure, however, there were several mounds of crates that were edging into visibility at the edge of the circle of light cast by the lantern.

Kurogane started towards the mounds of crates since there was nothing wrong that he could see in the vicinity. Nothing that seemed to match the description of 'bad things', anyway.

The lantern light moved along with him as Fai gave up his random search of the boxes near the entrance. Kurogane glanced sideways to see the other warden staring with a sombre expression the pile of crates.

There was a crunch of something underfoot. It was strangely loud in the heavy silence of the warehouse. Kurogane paused and looked down, aware of the ferret's forceful shivering around his neck.

It was a cockroach.

As he lifted his foot, the desiccated body broke apart. The dusty carapace shattered and folded legs fell in an untidy scatter.

Several points of pain broke out around his neck as the ferret's claws dug into his skin. Its grasp tightened so much that he found he had to lift a hand to its back in order to stop it choking him.

He eyed the cockroach with narrowed red eyes. It was just an insect. And a common one at that.

Kurogane glanced at Fai. The other man was staring at the dead insect with an unidentifiable expression. Pale blue eyes glanced up at Kurogane and then to the pile of crates.

Kurogane gave the cockroach one last look before continuing forward.

Even before they reached the crates, the smell told them what they would find. The air, previously thick with dust and a hint of mould and rat shit, revealed another scent. Sharp, almost sweet at first. Then stronger and more pungent, a thread of decay.

Kurogane's mouth tightened. The ferret had frozen, half tucked into his coat. He could barely feel its soft breaths across the back of his neck.

Fai suddenly stopped as they reached the crates. The thin man lifted the lantern to light up the area. Small shadows were cast like slanting ink blots as the objects on the ground were subjected to the steady light.

Soft pink. The shade of cherry blossoms in the spring. But what lay in the circle of light had nothing to do with life and everything to do with death.

Kurogane crouched down to have a better look. Soft and pink. The baby mice must have only been a day or so old. They were scattered in an odd pattern. Almost as if they had fallen from the crates above and landed in an arc like discarded game pieces. But the small bodies were untouched. They didn't show any signs of decay. It was as if they had suddenly died and their bodies had frozen in the state they had been left just after their lives had been extinguished.

He scowled. There was something very wrong here. He couldn't sense any living being that could attack them but there was still a threat of harm nonetheless. It was like the spore of some predator. A lingering scent of death that had departed.

Kurogane suddenly rose from his crouch and moved forward towards the crates. Ignoring the small noises of the ferret around his neck he began to circle around the crates, Fai following close behind.

The smell grew stronger as they grew closer to the source. Old death. Even before they rounded the mound of crate, Kurogane knew what to expect.

There was a large space created behind the pile of crates. An area that had been left to form a roughly circular area of cleared space. And in this space, in the shadow of the mound of wooden boxes, there was another mound. This one made of flesh.

The lantern cast angular shadows as it fell on the tangle of carcasses. At first it was hard to make out exactly what the shapes were. But as the light continued to fall, odd protrusions revealed themselves as legs, heads and tails that stuck out at odd angles from the pile. Blood-matted fur, stiff limbs, clouded and leaking eyes. The carcasses had been tossed into the space with no regard for what they had been. Piled as if each new addition had been thrown on haphazardly.

And if the size of the pile was an indication, then their man had been collecting for a while.

Both men stood silently for a long time, eyes simply running over the display before them. For it was a display. There had been no attempt to hide the carcasses except for storing them behind the mound of crates. But even that was an act that gave a backdrop for the grisly sculpture. The person who had done this had clearly expected that this would be found at some date.

The entire scene had an atmosphere that unnerved even Kurogane who had investigated dozens of crimes, most of them violent, in the past. It wasn't simply that there were a large number of animals that had been slaughtered and stacked like so much dead wood. Or even that all indications pointed to this being the work of a madman.

It was wrong beyond the nature of the act which had been committed. There were no flies. None of the flesh-eating beetles that would arrive after the maggots had done their work. In fact the bodies were undisturbed by any of the usual carrion gatherers - they were untouched except for the decay that resulted from the passage of time.

Fai turned to Kurogane, still holding the lantern. Its light hadn't wavered when they had come across the pile of corpses behind the crates. "We should call in this in."

Kurogane grimaced. He was not on the best of terms with his immediate superior. Usually he carried out his investigations as he saw fit, leaving the man to clean up the damages afterwards. Kurogane wasn't one for tact or clean solutions.

But from the serious expression in Fai's eyes, the almost distant look on his face, Kurogane knew that this was bigger that what they had faced before. There was something extremely unusual about the whole situation. Something that went beyond a simple crime.

Even an animated sausage had the brains to figure that out.

Kurogane eyed the bloody pile once more. They'd have to send word to the chief.

xXx

The man that stood next to the ruins of the warehouse entrance was tall. His lean height was emphasized by the cut of the heavy dark grey ankle-length coat he wore over the pale dove-grey of his suit. The coat was unfastened, opening to reveal the gold glitter at the hem of his jacket and the softer pattern of ripples on his darker vest beneath. The gold matched the light shade of his hair, a light brown that was streaked liberally with blond, which was tied back at his nape with a matching gold tie. The co-ordination of colours ran to his eyes as well, the pale grey of his suit reflecting the pale blue-white colour of his eyes.

Alastaire shook his head. "Was it really necessary to break the door?" He looked over the twisted wood critically. "I'm going to have to explain this to Lord Hinata now."

He turned and raised an eyebrow at Kurogane's dark expression. "Really warden, is there ever an investigation you get through without breaking something?"

The large warden's fists clenched. Mokona, not having budged from its perch around the man's neck, made a small movement.

Alastaire peered up at the furry bundle wrapped around the man's neck. His lips suddenly quirked. "Is the coat not adequate?"

Kurogane's expression darkened and Fai placed a warning hand on the larger warden's arm. "Lord Woodrow."

Alastaire's eyes narrowed slightly at the blond man's serious manner. The coin he held turned slowly between his fingers. "Flourite." He studied the blonde's face for a few moments. Finally he put the coin away and turned to the larger man who was still glaring at him. "Lead the way, warden."

With a dark glare, Kurogane turned and stalked into the warehouse. Fai followed a little behind, Alastaire keeping pace. As soon as they entered, Fai retrieved the lantern set on the floor and moved to the lead. Alastaire followed alongside Kurogane, who shot the lord an angry glance, pale eyes taking in the surroundings revealed by the lantern light.

He didn't miss the glances cast at the broken cockroach. Alastaire's eyes narrowed thoughtfully as he surveyed the two men who accompanied him. The thoughtful expression soon changed into a guarded grimness as he caught the reek which built the closer they got to the pile of crates.

Alastaire stopped and frowned as he caught sight of the dead mice. "Do we know how long these crates have been here?"

It was Fai who answered. "Several months at least. The warehouse hasn't been used since the last cargo was cleared."

Kurogane scowled at the crates. "It will be almost impossible to tell when this place started being used."

Alastaire's frown deepened. But he didn't say anything, simply gestured to indicate that they should continue.

Fai led the way round the crates and lifted the lantern to illuminate the slowly decomposing pile of flesh and fur.

Alastaire's mouth tightened as he took in the size of the mound. He stepped forward and took at closer look at the mangled conglomeration of bodies and limbs. The head of a dog confronted him, a glutinous trail over the fur of its face giving away what had happened to its right eye. Something had been thrust forcefully through the thinner bone behind the eye right into the brain cavity.

The lord stepped back and surveyed the pile. It was chest high and almost two meters wide at the base. This collection had taken a lot of time to create and hinted at a fearsome resolve. Not to mention mental instability.

Fai had set the lantern down on one of the crates and was now slowly walking the mound, stopping every few steps to more closely examine something that had caught his eye. Alastaire turned to the blond man's partner.

"Kurogane?"

The larger warden's arms were crossed over his chest. His red eyes were shadowed as he turned them to his superior. His earlier anger was gone, replaced a serious, slightly guarded expression. "Someone who does this isn't going to stop."

Alastaire stared at the pile with a frown. "With all the other incidents in the area, it's enough to make this into a serious matter. We can't treat this like a simple string of bizarre incidents anymore." He paused, staring out into the dark confines of the warehouse. For a moment he thought hard, fingers making slight flexing motions as if it still turned the coin in his pocket.

"Lord Woodrow."

Both men turned at the quiet voice. Fai was staring into pile. He had been walking around the grisly mound as the other two men had talked, peering at the shapes that made up the whole. Now he stood on the other side, in the space left between the carcasses and the crates.

Kurogane was already moving and Alastaire not far behind. They skirted around the mound and worked their way next to the blond warden. Fai met their eyes sombrely and then gestured to the pile.

Sticking out from the side of the pile of animal carcasses, pale against the patchwork of fur and blood, was a human hand.

"Shit." Kurogane stared at the pile trying to gauge where the rest of the body was. Or whether there was space for more than one.

Alastaire was looking at the hand with an unreadable expression. "Damn him for always being right." He muttered half under his breath.

Suddenly he glanced back at Fai and Kurogane. "I give you both full jurisdiction in this matter. You will both be in charge of investigating this incident and all others linked to it. None of the usual restrictions will apply - I'm giving you both free reign." He paused, pale eyes moving from one to the other. "You will report directly to me or His Highness."

Both men nodded in acknowledgement and Alastaire turned his gaze back to the hand. He had a feeling that only grew stronger the more he looked at it.

This was just the beginning.

xXx

In my AUs there are only the two Mokonas. Any others are inferior creations, not ones that are the same like there are copies of people in different universes. So this Mokona is a bit less intelligent and ended up as a furry sausage :D

The next instalment, Painted Fate, should be up at the end of the month.


	20. Painted Fate I

AN: The first few instalments have focused mainly on Doumeki but now you get a glimpse of what Lord Kimihiro really gets up to. Not that he does this every day - he'd be dead otherwise. And the way things are going...well let's just say that it's a good thing that Doumeki came into the picture when he did.

Supernatural Entanglements:

Painted Fate

I

"He's going to kill someone." Lady Halstead seemed resigned as she said it. As if her warnings had been unheeded for so long that she didn't expect anyone to listen to her now.

"Your husband?"

Her smile was bitter. "Yes. Lord Halstead. The respected trader and up-standing gentleman." Her faded blue eyes lowered. "I don't blame you if you don't believe me."

Kimihiro regarded her with solemn eyes. "I believe you. I doubt you would have come here otherwise."

The lady's gaze flicked up from bronze statue of a dragon curled up on the low table. She stared into her host's face, a small smile creasing her lips. "I suspect we have much in common, Lord Watanuki. You are held caged by spirits and I by my husband."

Her smile widened slightly as she took in his faint expression of surprise. "I'm not so foolish as to forget the knowledge of the second world like so many have chosen to do. I know very well the reason why wards are so important." Her smile faded. "That's why I can't turn a blind eye to what my husband is doing."

At first glance Lady Halstead appeared as any other noble lady. The dress she wore was modest by current standards – a garment that was elegant but slightly out of style. Instead of diving to expose her womanly attributes, the neckline was modest, only showing enough of her chest to display the large moonstone that sat at the hollow of her throat. The stone's colour contrasted sharply with the dark red and browns of her dress. A simple bodice hugged her torso and led into skirts that flowed to the floor without the expansion of bustles and or hoops. Long sleeves came to her wrists where they met her plain white gloves. Her hair was held up by several jewelled pins that displayed the matching fine moonstone earrings that hung from her ears.

But on closer inspection, the carefully constructed façade was revealed at the illusion it was. The dress was ill-fitting – the slight looseness at shoulders, across her chest and in the sleeves suggested the lady had recently lost weight. The twists of hair that hung down around her neck and shoulders were dull, having lost their healthy sheen. Faint lines bracketed her eyes and mouth, giving her a worn look that was emphasised by the faint shadows under eyes and their dulled gaze.

She did not look well.

"And so you came to me for help." Kimihiro couldn't help but feel a little surprised. Most of his clients came, not through any real belief in his ability to help them, but desperation. Aside from those he had taken into his care, most of his visitors didn't even seem to believe in the second world. It was refreshing to have someone who was both firm in belief and seeking to undo a wrong simply because it had caused harm to others. Lady Halstead was a rare person.

The lady smiled, honey over broken glass. She had a vulnerable air about her as if something inside her was broken and what was left did its best to continue. "I've heard that you've helped people before. Thomas, my stable boy, assured me that you were an actual practitioner, not just one of the dressed up conmen that proliferate in the capital."

Interesting that she relied on her servants for information. Kimihiro got the idea than the remark about cages was more literal than he had first believed.

Her smile became more genuine. "Now that I'm here, I'm inclined to believe it."

Kimihiro found himself unaccountably touched by the comment. It seemed to him that trust was something fragile and hard-earned by this woman. "Perhaps you can tell me what Lord Halstead has been doing." He hesitated. "I can't guarantee anything but I will do everything in my power to aid you if I am able."

A soft smile crossed her worn face. "Thank you." It wasn't just words but a heartfelt sigh of relief. As if she now had someone to share a burden that she had been carrying alone for a long time.

She took up her teacup and composed her thoughts for a few moments. "It began several years ago." She took a deep breath. "My husband was not always the prosperous man he is today. Ten years ago his ventures were failing and the creditors were beginning to make noises." The fingers of her free hand twisted with the fabric of the skirt on her lap. "It seemed that we would have to retire to the country."

Her eyes grew slightly pained. "I had already sold much of my mother's heirlooms to meet the debtor's claims and at that point I had resigned myself to social exile." It was clear that it was the former that had been the most upsetting. But she suddenly seemed to realize who she was talking to and lowered her eyes in embarrassment.

Kimihiro wasn't offended. He was used to it. "And then something happened." He ignored the slip.

The lady's shaky smile was slightly relieved. "Yes." Her hands shook slightly as she lowered her cup to the waiting saucer. "He received the painting."

Kimihiro felt a sudden chill, as if cool fingers had brushed across the back of his neck. A painting.

His guest didn't notice his sudden foreboding. "He said that it was a gift from a colleague at the time." Her eyes darkening as she continued. "I believed him - we didn't have any money to buy it and it was unthinkable to be buying art when we were about to sell our home. I didn't think more on it after that - it seemed a strange gift at the time but we could never have refused it." (1)

She paused, looking as if she was about to cry but bravely persevered. "A week later, my husband invited Lord Oshiro over for dinner. He was a partner in the one remaining business venture that was still yielding good returns." He eyes squeezed shut briefly. "It was unusual that that my husband showed him the painting before he left. But at that time I barely registered what was going on. I only remembered the incident because Lord Oshiro commented that the subject was unique - he had never seen a depiction of a hunting accident before."

Lady Halstead let out a deep breath and raised the teacup to her lips once more. Kimihiro waited patiently for her to regain some steadiness. He had an idea of where the tale was going and he didn't mind the brief reprieve.

"It was a week later that I learnt that my husband had not sold off his share of the business - he had made a deal to buy more." The hand in her lap fisted. "Then Lord Oshiro was killed in a hunting accident and the business fell entirely into my husband's hands. It was enough to ensure that our fortunes were reversed. We would never have to move to the country. The lenders renewed our lines of credit."

"Since then," she continued, looking wretched, "several of my husband's guests have come to similar misfortunes. One man, a signatory in the royal clerks' office, was crushed by a runaway carriage. Lord Miyoshi choked to death on a fishbone at his coastal estate. Lady Shiomi became severely ill after her travels abroad and died soon afterward. One of the creditors who refused to extend another line of credit drowned in a boating incident. All accidents, in no way linked to my husband." Her eyes shadowed. "In no way except that all were involved with certain of my husband's dealings. And that each were shown the painting when they came to dine with us."

She looked across the table earnestly. "I don't know how but I know my husband is the cause of all this. Every death and accident has only led to greater wealth and prosperity for Lord Halstead."

Her eyes locked on Kimihiro. "I want you to put a stop to the curse that lies on that painting."

xXx

Kimihiro stood before the doorway, eyes moving slowly over the ward emblazoned on its upper half.

For anyone who didn't know better, it was just another door, no doubt leading to another room in the mansion's catalogue. To Kimihiro it represented the sacrifice of his parents. And all those who came before them. No doubt once he was gone, its purpose would be forgotten. He was the last of his line after all.

Kimihiro pushed aside the pang that rang through him at the thought. He withdrew the pocket watch from his coat pocket and summoned the construct that lived within by calling its name.

The tiny dragon pulled itself upright from the watch's surface and arched its body into a sinuous stretch. With tiny feet it braced itself on its hind legs to get a better view of the large cast-iron ward that had been set into the panelling of the wooden door.

"Ready to protect me again?" It was somewhat ridiculous to talk to a construct that part of his being made to create a separate entity. But Kimihiro had persisted in the belief that the dragon possessed its own awareness. Aside from Doumeki (and that didn't really count), he didn't talk to anyone outside Hikideshi and the people who came to seek his services. Ryuu was the only one who was constantly at his side and at least gave him the illusion that he was not alone.

He chose to believe that Yuuko was right and that a construct, once created, could gradually form its own existence.

The dragon certainly seemed to understand his words. It rubbed its small head against his thumb before leaping from his outstretched hand with a small bound.

It landed on the ward, small claws gripping the cast iron tightly to hold it in place. With as much assurance as if it had been on a horizontal surface, the gold dragon began tracing the lines of the ward, walking across the surface of the iron. The black metal took on a golden glow in the construct's wake. Soon the entire ward was lit by a golden light that was growing stronger with every passing minute.

Kimihiro caught Ryuu as the construct leapt back off the ward and onto the safety of his palm. He cradled the dragon and the watch it fiercely clung to against his chest. The portal would open soon.

The ward suddenly flashed with a blinding, gold glow.

Kimihiro, who had been expecting it, reached out and firmly grasped the door handle, wrenching the door open.

A howling rush of air gusted out from the entrance.

Kimihiro braced himself in the face of the sudden gale. His hair whipped around his face and his clothes blew wildly. It was only when the wind stopped that Kimihiro lowered the arm he had used to shield his face.

A churning black whirlpool formed a tunnel beyond the doorway. Every so often something moved in the dark whirl - a darker shape would flit through the vortex or a flash of light like a small fork of lightning would briefly light the darkness. It was a forbidding prospect and not the sort of portal through which one would wisely venture.

But it was the only way that was open. And as much as he disliked using it, the gains were always worth the risk.

As Kimihiro stepped forward, he strengthened the link between himself and the construct he held in his palm. As soon as the lord stepped fully into the dark portal, there was a bright golden flash. Ryuu, grown several times his usual size, snapped his formidable jaws at a shadow that ventured too close. It quickly retreated and melded back into the swirling darkness that surrounded them.

Kimihiro continued moving without pausing at the incident. With the dragon's anaconda-sized body wrapped protectively around his own, he concentrated on the passage. By allowing Ryuu increased access to his latent powers, the dragon construct was able to face any normal threat that might encounter them as they crossed. Kimihiro was weakened by the expenditure of energy but he judged it was well worth it. He might not survive the passage otherwise.

It took an indefinable amount of time to reach the familiar door. Sometimes it only felt like minutes and at others it dragged until it seemed they had been travelling for half a day. This time it could have been anywhere from ten minutes to two hours. The crescent became visible first, shinning out like a beacon through the dark sludge that regularly flowed through the vortex. Ryuu uncurled slightly from Kimihiro's shoulders as they drew closer. It was often the moments as one left the portal that were the most dangerous and the dragon was taking no chances. It held itself ready to defend them should there be any attack.

But as the door became fully visible, it suddenly opened before he could reach out to take hold of the ornate door handle. Two little girls, one with pink hair, the other with blue, appeared within the doorway. They bobbed a synchronized curtsey, ushering him inside. "Welcome! Welcome!"

Kimihiro let out a sigh as he crossed the threshold. They had arrived.

xXx

1) A slight reference to a custom involving the acceptance of gifts. Not really necessary at this point but it will have a big impact later on in the game. Politeness can get you into a load of trouble :D

xXx


	21. Painted Fate II

Supernatural Entanglements:

Painted Fate

II

"A painting." Yuuko was as serious as Kimihiro had ever seen her.

Kimihiro nodded tiredly. "Apparently the lord has been using it to curse the guests he invites to view it."

Yuuko fell silent for a long time, eyes distant as she considered the situation. "The painting is a powerful object." Her gaze met Kimihiro's. "As powerful in its way as the last object that you sent me."

The lord paled slightly.

"The painting is given direction and will by the ambition of its owner." A curl of smoke rose from her pipe, unravelling as it lifted into the air. "It feeds upon the lives it takes. The stronger it gets, the more fuelled by it becomes by the wants of its master. It is a widening spiral that can only end in the consumption of those around it."

Kimihiro thought of Lady Halstead's haunted eyes. "Can the curse be removed? Is it possible to end the cycle before it accelerates too far?"

The wish granter carefully tapped her pipe to empty it of ash. "No. It is too late for that. The painting is too powerful to be subdued by a mere seal or ward." Her eyes darkened. "I would think it likely that it had already killed before it came into Lord Halstead's possession. Otherwise it would have begun with minor injuries. As it began killing almost immediately, I would say that it has had many previous masters."

Kimihiro was starting to feel slightly ill at the thought. "The person who gave the painting to Lord Halstead?"

Yuuko nodded. "It may have been." She regarded him closely. "But it might have also been other forces at work. You have more than one enemy on the move, Kimihiro."

He looked away, trying to hide the sheer terror that shot through him at her words. He tried to push all thoughts of Them from his mind. "I can't allow it to continue, though." His voice was a little shaky but Yuuko was kind enough to ignore it.

"The only possible course of action is to remove it from the lord's possession. If it was sealed until you brought it to the major ward, then it is possible that you would be able to send it to me." She hesitated. "It would greatly reduce the debt you owe."

Kimihiro knew there was more. "But?"

"It is possible that the painting may be on the verge of being able to act by itself. The more power it gains, the less reliant it will become on its master for direction. At a certain point, it will be powerful enough to kill without the order of its owner." Yuuko rested her chin on one palm. "If it has reached that point, retrieving it will be very dangerous." Her darkened eyes rose to meet his own. "Especially for you, Kimihiro."

The lord was quiet.

"I could give you a ward powerful enough to seal it for a time but you would be vulnerable until that time." Her eyes hooded. "However, the price for such a ward would be very high, almost comparable to the payment the painting would be. You would not gain much from this venture."

She watched the lord's countenance, reading it clearly. "I would advise you to think it over before you commit yourself to retrieving it."

Kimihiro smiled wanly. "And I suppose this advice has its price, too?"

Yuuko leaned back on the couch. "No. It has already been paid. Your parents paid a heavy price and the granting of their wish is still unravelling."

Kimihiro's faint smile saddened slightly.

Yuuko sat up suddenly and flicked her hand in a forceful dismissive gesture. "But enough of the past." A sly smile crept across her face. "Tell me about Prince Doumeki."

xXx

Kimihiro returned to the mansion to find that someone was waiting for him.

As he opened the door leading to his study he was pinned by the pale gold eyes of Prince Doumeki.

"Been to see Yuuko?" The man's sharp eyes were fixed on him as if the force of his gaze alone would force the lord to share all the details.

Hikideshi must have told him.

"Yes." He slid the pocket watch into his coat pocket, trying to make the shaking of his hands as unobtrusive as possible. Ryuu's long manifestation had cost him but he had no intention of letting the prince see how fatigued he was. Or give him the details of his latest piece of business for that matter.

"What brings you here?" He eyed the table as he walked over to the empty armchair. The plate of pastries was nearly full so it seemed that the prince hadn't been waiting long.

Of course it might not have been the first plate.

The gold eyes flickered. He didn't say anything but Kimihiro could tell what he was thinking. Kimihiro didn't doubt for a moment that the prince knew that he was trying to change the subject. He was only hoping that the man might take the hint for once and stop getting involved in his affairs.

The prince had enough troubles already and Kimihiro had no intention of adding his own to the load.

"I heard that Lady Halstead visited." The gold eyes were questioning.

Kimihiro sighed. It was no use. The man was totally oblivious. It was a wonder he hadn't been killed yet over some social blunder. Kimihiro supposed that his status had something to do with the fact he was still alive.

"You seem uncommonly informed on my business." He'd given up trying to guess how the man managed it and had become resigned to the fact that the prince was rapidly becoming a fixture in his life.

At times like these, when he was drained and generally unsettled with the state of the world, it wasn't an entirely unpleasant prospect.

Doumeki ignored the implied question as he usually did any queries about his presence. "What did she want?"

Kimihiro sank into his usual chair, too tired to tell the prince off about his tactlessness and general lack of manners. "I'm not sure I'll be able to help her." He admitted. "Yuuko-"

He cut himself off. Telling Doumeki what Yuuko had said would only make the prince more inclined to intervene.

And he didn't want Doumeki in harm's way when he could handle the situation himself.

For once Doumeki didn't pursue it. Whether it was concern for the weakness he was displaying or something else, Kimihiro couldn't help but be grateful for it.

Kimihiro slipped a hand into his pocket and cupped the pocket watch in his fingers. He let his eyes close. The breach of manners didn't bother the prince. If anything he was probably taking advantage of the inattention to sneak a few pastries.

Kimihiro smiled faintly as the crunch of pastry reached his ears. It was strange but despite Yuuko's warnings, he almost felt safe.

xXx

Doumeki was somewhat unsettled as he entered his carriage and it was a feeling he didn't like. Kimihiro's obvious exhaustion concerned him - he hadn't seen its like before except for the time where he had used his powers to dispose of the rabbit. But even then it hadn't been so extreme that Kimihiro had almost fallen asleep in front of him. Not so quickly, anyway. Knowing the other man's pride, he must have been absolutely drained to do so.

That Kimihiro felt the need to see Yuuko at all was deeply disturbing. From what Doumeki had gathered, he only visited the witch when a situation was beyond him or he had some occult item to pay off his debt. Since Kimihiro had refused to talk about Lady Halstead's visit, the prince assumed that this time it was the former.

Kimihiro always fell silent when he wanted to shield others from the latest situation he was tangled in. It wasn't in him to lie.

Doumeki looked out the carriage window as the horses jolted into action. The light in the window of the master bedroom winked out. Kimihiro had retired.

Doumeki frowned. He wasn't about to let this go.

xXx

Unravelling indeed :D

And yeah, Kimihiro mellows a fair bit when he's exhausted. Lucky Doumeki - he's got an advantage in the future. The stalker :D


	22. Painted Fate III

Supernatural Entanglements:

Painted Fate

III

The next day passed rather quickly. Kimihiro slept in, tired from the strain of travelling to and from Yuuko's shop. He didn't rise until late and therefore it wasn't until early afternoon that he received the messenger who had been waiting outside the gates before dawn.

Apparently, Hikideshi had taken his orders to remain undisturbed quite literally.

But even as the butler allowed the messenger entry into the foyer, Kimihiro knew that the worst had happened. It was a sinking, dread-edged sensation that grew worse once he saw the young messenger's reddened eyes. The feeling was only confirmed when he read the letter that the boy had brought.

_Lord Kimihiro,_

_If you have received this missive then I have failed and fallen to the painting's curse. I hope you will prevail where I have not. Thomas will help you gain access to the painting._

_Beryl._

Kimihiro swallowed hard as he read the flowing signature. She had given him her first name. And used his own without the faint smear that was always attached to his title.

He folded the letter with shaking hands and carefully placed it into the pocket of his robe before turning to the boy. He was young, probably no more than twelve. His clothes were made for hard labour and contrasted strongly with the finer garments suited to household service. The pungent smell of loosen hay that hung around him confirmed the fact. A stable boy. Lady Halstead had been desperate to the last, it seemed.

Kimihiro hesitated slightly before addressing the boy. "When did Lady Halstead fall ill?" He tried to keep his voice as gentle as he could. Something told him that the boy would not deal well with harshness.

The boy's eyes darted from the lord's face to the pocket holding the letter and back again. He had been acting skittishly ever since he had been let into the mansion, keeping close to the nearest wall and eyes shifting nervously around his surroundings. "Last night. The lady came out to the stables as she usually does." A flash of murky green eyes that searched for any sign of ridicule at the thought before darting away again. "She gave me the letter and told me to deliver it if she didn't see me in the morning." He swallowed. "She was already in the Northern Ward by midnight."

He looked up, meeting the Kimihiro's eyes directly for the first time. "You'll be able to help her, won't you?"

Help her. He should have helped her when she first came to him for aid. But instead he had taken the time to think it over. Even though he knew what he was going to do, he had delayed.

And this was the result.

"Wait here." Kimihiro's eyes flicked to Hikideshi, conveying a silent message to the butler to keep the boy in hand. "I'll be back shortly."

He ignored the boy's startled stare and increasingly distressed questions and left the foyer, heading back to the warded door hidden deep within the mansion. He had learnt in his years of service to Yuuko to never promise anything that he wasn't certain he could deliver.

But that didn't mean he wouldn't try.

xXx

As soon as it was summoned, the golden dragon leapt to the warded door and began to run along the iron ward, activating the portal. One after the other, the points glowed as they were fed power through the construct. Soon the entire ward was lit up and Kimihiro reached out towards the door handle. Even as the door opened, the construct was swelling to its larger form and wrapping its long sinuous body around the slender frame of its master.

They were in a hurry but the construct was taking no chances.

Kimihiro knew it was reckless but he allowed the construct to draw on more power that it had for the previous transit through the void. He had never used the portal for two journeys in such close succession and he was uncertain how drained it would leave him. But even so, he didn't ignore the feeling that told him that Ryuu would need the extra power this time.

His intuition was right. As soon as he stepped into the portal he could see that something was wrong. The bright lights that flared within the twisting tunnel were dimming, the light dampened by the increased presence of dark shadows. They surged towards him, splitting aside from the flowing walls and snaking into the pathway at the portal's centre. Ryuu reared up to face them, golden jaws agape to reveal needle-like teeth.

Kimihiro kept walking, ignoring the slight drag at his steps as shadows reached up to grasp his feet. Trusting that the construct would be able to fend off the closing darkness. Ryuu was in constant motion, a quick-silver coil that orbited the lord, jaws tearing into the smoking shadows that attempted to impede their progress. Before long, Kimihiro could feel the stretched, tight feeling in his chest that spoke of an over-extension of power. Pain shot through his right eye, a sharp stabbing sensation that he did his best to ignore. The passage was beginning to take a toll and he hadn't even arrived yet.

But he didn't dare turn back. He needed to seal the painting and get it back to Yuuko. It was one more chink in the armour that protected the city and as the last of his line he had a duty to deal with it.

And a duty not to fail the person who had given him her first name. (1)

By the time the familiar crescent door came into view, Kimihiro's determined steps had become a stagger. Ryuu had reduced slightly in size but the ferocity of the golden dragon's attacks hadn't weakened. The twisting tunnel was now aglow with flashes of gold lightning that struck out at the shadows that coiled around them.

Kimihiro managed the last few steps and grasped the ornate door handle, wrenching the door open. He staggered the last few steps inside and the door slammed shut behind him. Almost instantly, there was a sound like an explosion on the other side. A sudden silence followed. Whatever had been hounding them was now gone.

The lord fell against the nearest wall, breathing harshly.

Ryuu had shrunk down to the size of an acorn as soon as the door had shut. The construct now ran down its master's arm and clung to the fist clenched around the watch, one small gold leg reaching out to touch the cool metal surface. The contact with its 'home' meant that the strain of channelling energy was less. And the reduction in the dragon's size meant that Kimihiro was not at risk of collapsing at any second.

Not that it was much of an improvement. Even with the reduction in power he was nearing his limits.

"Lord Watanuki."

Kimihiro pushed away from the wall to find Yuuko standing further down the corridor, observing him with calm patience. She closed the distance between them, the draping skirts of the robe she wore trailing behind her. It was similar to the formal kimonos which had been popular during the Founding, consisting of several layers of silken garments. In this case the under kimono was a pale lavender and the outer a dark blue that neared purple, decorated with lacy butterflies embroidered in black and white. Her hair was loose and falling back over her shoulders, strands melding with some of the black butterflies they overlaid.

It appeared that he had arrived at the end of the day.

Burgundy eyes moved to the miniscule dragon perched on his closed hand but Yuuko made no comment on its state. Or the state of its master. "So you have made your choice." Her face was grave. It was likely that she already knew the consequences of such a decision.

Kimihiro nodded tiredly.

"Very well, then. I won't waste time." She held her hand out to Maru who had come to stand beside her. The blue-haired girl held a small box cupped in both hands. Threads of gold, looping and crossing lines forming formidable wards, winked on the glossy black lacquer that served as a background. At Yuuko's gesture, the soulless girl reverently lifted the lid and retrieved its contents.

Her small hand retreated from the box's depths and uncurled to reveal four strips of wood, their ends cut diagonally.

"Place these in the four corners of the painting's frame. The frame already partially binds it and these will strengthen it, caging the painting in eight points. The ninth will be yourself." She didn't explain the last part but took the pieces of wood from Maru and laid them in his empty palm.

"It should remain warded long enough for you to transport it to the major ward. No other will suffice to allow its safe transportation." She watched as he put the pieces into a pocket of his robe, the construct watching the movements warily from its perch on his other hand. Her eyes flickered and she reached into a sleeve to retrieve something. An object that glittered as the light touched it. A gold bracelet.

Kimihiro's eyes widened at the sight of it. Slowly, as if he was afraid it might disappear, he reached out to take it from where it hung between her fingers. He opened his mouth to speak but swallowed hard instead, fingers closing hard around the fragile links.

"It was entrusted to me long ago. I was instructed to give it to you when the time came." She took in his wretched expression. "You had better go now if you want to ward the painting. I fear that the misfortune that befell Lady Halstead was its own doing."

The reminder of the life that hung in the balance snapped the lord out of his grief-stricken daze. He nodded the chain digging into the flesh of his palm as he tightened his grip around it. "I'll deal with the payment when I return."

Yuuko watched, the soulless girls to either side, as he turned to leave, unnaturally silent. She already knew the price that was owed and there was no way to stop it now.

xXx

1) The giving and use of personal names is a big deal (as you many have inferred). While most people are addressed by use of the name of their line, only intimates can use one's first name. And use of it without any closeness is a slight. In the case of Lady Halstead, it is something more. Among those of the old ways, the use of a name can convey blessings and also curses. Giving one's name to another is a sign of trust. Especially in the case of Kimihiro who is a practitioner.

And as to why Doumeki hasn't given his first name to Kimihiro. Well, he actually doesn't like being called Shizuka. The use of that name in the past has always been tied to unpleasant things (yes, that will be covered later :). Kimihiro might be able to change that but we'll have to see. But you will have noted that the prince started referring to Lord Watanuki as Kimihiro rather early. And even at the start, when he referred to the lord as Lord Kimihiro, he never used it in a slighting way.

xXx


	23. Painted Fate IV

Supernatural Entanglements:

Painted Fate

IV

Gaining access to Lord Halstead's estate was easy.

It turned out that the stable yards had a separate entrance which was serviced by its own drive. It was located on the southern boundary of the estate, out of sight of the main gates that lay to the north. The boundary wall was broken by a pair of simple iron gates that bore the Halstead crest, a plain gateway that was suitable for one of the estate's service access points. Thomas leapt down from his seat next to Itsuki to open the gate in a smooth practised move and Itsuki drove through, pausing only to let Thomas clamber up once more after he had closed the gate behind them. The drive wound through a thickly wooded area that had been maintained to hide the mundane coming and goings of the workers who supplied the stables.

They were not heading to the stable yards, though. At Thomas' direction, the carriage soon turned down an adjoining path that was little more than a dirt track. It lead to an old building that had once served as the main coach house for the estate but was now used to store equipment and older vehicles that were no longer in constant use. The change had been fairly recent, occurring when Lord Halstead began a drastic overhaul of his estates to mirror the current modernistic beliefs that were now in vogue. The coach house was hardly now visited unless there was something specific that had to be retrieved.

Favouring haste, Kimihiro simply ordered that the carriage be driven straight up the track and into the coach house. The stable boy simply jumped off from his perch next to Itsuki and ran forward to open the door before the driver drove the carriage inside.

There was a risk that the antique carriage would be seen and recognized for what it was but Kimihiro was willing to take the chance. He was going to need the extra warding of the carriage to take the painting to the mansion as quickly and safely as possible. And the carriage, while not the most inconspicuous choice, was the best one.

As soon as the doors of the coach house closed behind the carriage, shutting them safely off from view, Kimihiro left the cabin. The interior of the building was dark and smelt strongly of leather and oil. The light slicing in from the small windows set high on the walls revealed the glint of metal on harnesses hung on the walls and an old coach resting in one corner. It was deserted. As soon as Kimihiro emerged, Kichirou was immediately there to help him out, a solid hand on his arm to ease his descent. Itsuki, who had jumped down from his perch and was now standing next to the bays in the traces, looked at him worriedly as well. It was obvious that Hikideshi had been talking to both of them.

The butler had been waiting outside the portal door as soon as he arrived back at the mansion. Kimihiro had barely had the time to register his presence before a cup was thrust into his shaking hand. The look on the butler's face was enough to have him drinking its contents without any protest. Hikideshi was usually blank-faced and so the faint frown that curved his mouth was equivalent to the fiercest expression of disapproval from anyone else. As bad as he was feeling, Kimihiro had had no intention of braving the butler's displeasure.

It turned out to be one of Hikideshi's concoctions. Even as he drank down the cup's contents he could taste the herbs that had been liberally mixed with the tea. Kimihiro eyed the empty cup warily as he lowered it from his lips. Whatever it had been, it was several times stronger than what had been pressed on him in the past. Most of the time he could hardly taste the more unorthodox contents.

But it seemed to work. Even as Hikideshi took back the cup, Kimihiro could feel the strained trembles in his arms and shoulders fade away. The tight feeling in his chest and the dull ache of his right eye had all but disappeared. Ryuu, which had shrunk down to miniature form once more, disappeared into the pocket watch as his hand finally unclenched from around the metal.

"Itsuki and Kichirou are waiting with the primary carriage." Even if he disapproved, Hikideshi had already made all the arrangements for his return. "They are looking after Lady Halstead's messenger" Dark, near-black eyes locked with his own. "I will help you change into more suitable attire."

Kimihiro had nodded meekly. It was easier not to protest. And it wouldn't have done any good anyway.

As ever, the butler's aid was impeccable. Kimihiro was now wearing a simple black outfit of vest, shirt and trousers which, he had been assured, made him look simply like another servant. Certainly Thomas' disbelieving double-take had been a vote of confidence. Kimihiro was confident that he could pull off the manner of a servant if he had to. He'd just act like Hikideshi.

Not that he intended to run into anyone once he was on the grounds.

After one reassuring glance at the three who would be waiting for him, Kimihiro slipped out of the coach house. Following Thomas's instructions, he left the stableboy and his tenants with the carriage (the latter two alarmingly eager to defend it if they got the chance) and headed towards the main house.

The coach house was set some distance away from the mansion that was the focus of the Halstead estate. A gravel road had once linked the two while the old coach house had served its original function. It still remained but merged the new drive that had been constructed to link the new stable yards and adjoining coach house to the main drive. Even these newer structures had been built within the wooded area that concealed all the activity from the mansion's view. Thomas had told him how the new drive diverged around the manicured gardens that surrounded the mansion and joined with the main drive that lead from the estate's main entrance to the front door of the lord's abode. Carriages would simply appear at the mansion when they were needed as if out of nowhere.

Kimihiro followed the track until it finally petered out and joined the new gravel drive. He walked along the road for several minutes until he spotted the shaped box hedges that marked the boundary of the gardens. There was a break in the living fence, a faint trail leading onto the well-watered lawns. Through the gap, the solid presence of the main house was highly visible, the focus of the garden.

With a confidence that he didn't feel, the lord strode through the gap and started across the manicured gardens, heading towards the mansion. The lush grass cushioned his footfalls and Kimihiro walked on in eerie silence as he walked through an avenue of shaped pines. The lack of sound was beginning to unnerve him. Even a manmade landscape such as this supported life. There should have been birds, starlings and sparrows that lurked in hedges, if nothing else.

But there was nothing. No cheeps or trills filled the air. There was no sudden whirl of wings as he passed by suitable hedges.

There was nothing.

His eyes lifted to the building before him that was framed by the avenue of pines.

Lord Halstead's mansion was essentially a large, unadorned rectangle built of local cream stone. From the rear all that could be seen were two rows of windows and the large patio that had been attached to run along the back of the building, leading out from what probably served as a ballroom. Two white stone staircases curved down to ground level where they led out into the garden. There were no decorative flourishes around the regularly-spaced windows. No guardian statues or ward markings along the roofline or at the corners of the building. It was all smooth lines and imposing scale – the hallmark of the modern architecture that had gained such praise among members of high society as they sought to discard the 'cluttered' styles of the past.

The original mansion had been built in the old style of architecture, influenced by the need of wards and a preference for ornate decoration. But Lord Halstead had altered it to fit in with the vision of modernity that he sought to achieve with the addition of the new east and west wings. Faint discolouration on the stone showed where warding markings had been erased and guardian statues had been cut off. It gave the building a curiously sterile feel. It was all about the latest fashion and wealth. There was no soul to the structure at all.

The sight of it unnerved him more that then unnatural silence of the grounds. His feeling of unease increased as he drew closer to the cream stone building that hunkered down in the bed of greenery at its back and flanks. The empty eyes of its window stared out blankly, no movements beyond them to indicate that there was any one inside. Kimihiro started to become apprehensive. Perhaps the painting had already-

He spotted the servants' access that Thomas had described. It was set at ground level in the shadow of one of the large staircases that descended from the enormous patio down to the gardens. The plain wood door had a simple iron handle that was cool to the touch. The cold iron didn't resist as he pressed down on it. The door swung smoothly and silently inward.

The area within was dark and musty. The light from the doorway behind him showed that it was a narrow corridor that ran to the east and west. Small lights marked the passage, illuminating doors and other corridors that lead off in different directions. It was a service corridor. Built so that servants could go about their duties without being seen. A rabbit's warren of passageways that lead to all areas of the building.

Refusing to hesitate, Kimihiro turned left and started his search to locate the room that Lady Halstead had described. Thomas had done his best to guess at its location but the boy had never been in the house before and he could only suggest the rough vicinity of the room where the painting was stored. It was left to Kimihiro to find it in the narrowed field of possibilities.

As it was, he need not have worried. As Kimihiro approached the western wing, a headache edged into his mind and his stomach began to turn. Instead of ignoring the feeling, the lord concentrated on it, noting the rising discomfort depending on the direction he headed. The closer he got, the twinges of pain in his eye became a steady ache that bored into his thoughts.

He was tightly gripping the silver pocket watch in one hand by the time he located the room. It was an isolated part of the building, situated in the west wing as far as it could be from the remains of the original building. A blank door in a dimly-lit corridor. Dark tendrils of black smoke licked through the gap between the door and the floor. Kimihiro paused, hand resting lightly along the door jam. His hesitation only lasted a moment, however, and he flung open the door.

Thick black smoke, greasy and pressing against him, rushed out the open doorway. Kimihiro sagged at the assault, nearly gagging at the way the black tendrils eagerly wrapped around him. He gripped the door jamb tightly and staggered into the room, somehow managing to shut the door behind him. He only got a few steps into the room, however, before he fell to his knees and was forced to call on his construct.

The gold dragon appeared long and thin. Immediately it coiled around the fallen form of the lord and bared needle-thin teeth at the pressing darkness. The smoke retreated as if stung and Kimihiro unsteadily regained his feet. The dark tendrils fluctuated sullenly at a distance but the lord could now vaguely make out the lines of a frame through the shifting mass.

Ignoring the cold sweat that coated his skin and the sickening clenching of his innards, Kimihiro reached into his pocket with shaking fingers. The firm edges of the four pieces of wood that Yuuko had given him met his fingers and he pulled them out of his pocket. They felt light, almost insubstantial in his hand but shadows within the dark smoke began to shift and move uneasily. Ryuu's coils tightened at the shadowy movements and the dragon's mouth fell open in a threatening show.

Kimihiro tightened his grip on the pieces of wood and started forward. Ryuu could only hold what lurked in the smoke at bay for a short while. The construct couldn't dispel the source or erase the effects that the exposure had on its master. Eventually it would be too great a toll. He only had a small window in which to act.

The dark sludge parted in great roiling billows as the lord moved towards the painting. Some tendrils lingered but snapped back hastily as they came in contact with the glowing construct. Kimihiro ignored the reaching tendrils in favour of their source. The painting hung on the wall, its upper edge a foot or so above eye-level, an enormous blank slate framed by carved wood with decorative flourishes highlighted with silver leaf.

As Kimihiro came closer, however, the blank surface began to move. The uniform black smooth surface began to change, movements on the canvas below causing the paint to ripple. Lumps of black paint lifted from the flat surface, bubbling up from the canvas like greasy oil from the ground. More and more bubbles rose, shifting to create ridges. Shapes started to form and dispersed as others took their place.

Bracing himself with one hand against the wall, the wooden pieces held in a fist, Kimihiro placed the first sliver of wood in the nearest corner of the frame.

It settled into place without a sound but the effect was visible. The bubbling movement of the paint stopped. The gathering shapes dispersed by a wave of ripples spreading out from the newly sealed corner.

Kimihiro separated another piece of wood and reached up to place it in the top right corner. As it fell into place, the paint began to move again, sharp lines rising to create a familiar outline. More waves of smoke billowed out from the frame, swirling around Kimihiro briefly before being chased off by Ryuu's snapping jaws.

Black paint retreated and colour began to light up the remaining lines of raised black. Shapes began to make sense as the image became clearer. Kimihiro took one glimpse at the forming image and snapped the third piece of wood into place.

Colours began to fill in and lines tighten, the details becoming more clear.

The last piece of wood settled into place. But not before Kimihiro caught sight of the final image. It was burned into his mind even as the painting was suddenly engulfed in a billowing sheet of smoke.

Kimihiro grasped at his chest as he fell to his knees. His breath came in tearing gasps as he fought against the sudden stabbing pain in his chest and the blade that was stabbing through his right eye. Ryuu uncurled from around its master in concern. But even as it did so, the pain increased and the gold dragon suddenly wavered and winked out.

Kimihiro let out a soft moan as he struggled to breathe through the increasing pain. It took a few moments for him to adjust to the sensation. But he found that the pain wasn't so sharp if he kept his breathing shallow. After a few moments he managed to straighten up so that he was kneeling instead of half-slumped on the floor. He raised a shaking hand to his forehead to wipe away the sweat on his brow and froze when he saw the red liquid coating his finger. His breath caught as his gaze fell on the painting.

It was less than a tenth of its original size. The canvas was blank once more. The only colour came from the smear of blood that coated the top left corner where the fourth sliver of wood had been placed.

Kimihiro recalled Yuuko's last words and winced. Slowly, pain stabbing through his chest with every movement, he climbed to his feet and walked unsteadily over to the painting. Gingerly he lifted it from the hook it dangled from lopsidedly. The sealed painting was light in his hands and he realized with relief that carrying it to the carriage shouldn't pose a problem.

If his strength held.

For it was leaving him in a slow but steady stream, he realized. With the painting in his hands he could feel the strength that left him running into the frame to power the ward that held the painting quiescent. By the way it was draining him, it wouldn't last much longer.

Kimihiro tucked the painting under one arm, ignoring the pain that shot through him at the movement. He didn't have any more time to waste.

xXx

The lord had managed to get out of the Halstead mansion, still without having seen anyone. As he slipped out the servant's entrance and stumbled out into the manicured garden, though, he caught sight of two carriages parked on the drive in front of the mansion. One marked with the crest of Halstead, the other curiously blank.

The fact that he hadn't noticed their arrival worried him. Most of his attention was taken up by the pain that seemed to be spreading through his chest the longer he walked. Lines of fire radiated outward with every breath. With the pain that ran like a lance through his eye into his brain, it was difficult to think straight, let alone pay much attention to his surroundings. But he still had enough awareness to realize that he had to get out of sight and quickly. Lord Halstead would notice the loss of the painting soon enough. Sooner rather than later if he had brought some guest in order to show it.

He couldn't be on the estate when that happened.

It was a good thing that the last leg of his journey was along the road to the stable yards. Feeling himself weaken and the pain starting to spread out from his chest, he simply focused on the gravel road and continued to move along it. When the dirt track intersected the gravel drive he automatically followed it, some part of his brain keeping him on track. With such a narrow focus he was able to concentrate on walking and block out the difficulties it caused. And after a time the steady warmth of the bracelet in his pocket helped him - it seemed to block out the pain somewhat. Enough so that he recognised that he needed to get inside the coach house when he nearly walked into it.

His tenants took one look at the way their lord was moving and abandoned any remaining stealth for haste. They had seen similar things in the past, though none so wretched, and knew that only a fast retreat to the mansion would prevent further deterioration.

Kimihiro was practically dragged to the carriage and thrust inside the warded confines of the cabin, the painting still clutched under one arm. There was only a pause long enough for the coach house doors to be flung open and Thomas, who had decided to leave Lord Halstead's service, to jump up beside Itsuki on his perch. And then the carriage was racing forward at a pace its antiquity shouldn't have allowed.

The pain receded slightly once he was in the confines of the carriage. The wards that were interlaced with its structure were enough to reinforce the ward on the painting, lessening the pull on him as ninth point. The carriage rocked as it jolted as it hit a rough patch of the drive, sending a flare of paint through his chest. Kimihiro wedged himself more firmly into the corner of the bench seat, leaning heavily against the wall. It was nearly half an hour's drive to return to the estate. And while the carriage wards had slowed the drain of power to the point where he could last much longer, it was still going to be a close thing.

Left to stare at the blank painting that was slowly draining his strength, Kimihiro had nothing to distract himself from the pain of the process. His power was largely inaccessible and only effectively usable through the tie he had with the construct he'd had created for that very purpose. To have that power feed a ward directly was...difficult. Without the buffer of a construct he was left to feel the full effects of a use of power he was never meant to shoulder. He didn't even have the conduit of the silver pole he had used in order to trigger the transportation of the Canar relic.

The return trip to the mansion couldn't go fast enough.

xXx


	24. Painted Fate V

Supernatural Entanglements:

Painted Fate

V

By the time the carriage raced up the gravel drive in front of the Watanuki mansion, Kimihiro was badly drained.

When the carriage suddenly skidded to a stop, the team jostling and skidding in their traces, he had no choice but to accept Kichirou's aid to get out of the carriage. As soon as the carriage door opened, breaking the ward of the cabin, the pain redoubled, nearly spilling Kimihiro out onto the gravel drive. The footman was pale himself as he helped his lord out of the carriage. "Milord. Should we call him?" The dark eyes were worried.

Kimihiro smiled faintly, or at least the best he could. Pain drilled though his eye like a dull corkscrew and flashes of pain radiated out from his chest along his limbs with every movement. His entire body felt cold and slightly numb. Except for his left hand which clutched around the gold bracelet and the place on his side where the silver pocket watch was tucked into a coat pocket. "No. Just help me inside." With his eye the way it was he'd probably walk into a wall. Not that he was able to walk under his own power at the moment.

The youth hastily complied, careful not to touch the painting his lord held onto so tightly. He slung Kimihiro's free arm over his shoulder and half-carried the lord up the steps. Even as they passed the two unicorns, the pain started to recede somewhat. Enough that as they ascended the steps Kimihiro was helping to support some of his own weight. As they reached the portico, the door opened and Kichirou moved to get his lord through the door that Hikideshi held open.

As they crossed the threshold, Kimihiro let his eyes close briefly in relief. He could feel the reassuring protections that stood solidly around him. Even if his strength suddenly gave out now, the painting would be confined by the mansion. Just standing near the major ward that powered the mansion's defences, was enough to give him a reprieve. A feeling that was increased tenfold as Hikideshi took hold of his arm.

The butler pulled one of the lord's arms over his shoulder before closing the door on Kichirou, shutting him outside. With the sealing of the main wards of the mansion, more of the pain receded. The radiating pain was no longer so sharp and the horrid twisting in his eye settled into a dull ache once more. Kimihiro found his feet and pushed away from Hikideshi, steadying himself on a coat rack.

The silver poles had already been set into the major ward. Kimihiro staggered between them, feeling more like himself with every step he took further into the main ward. Finally he was at the centre and placed the painting on the central point.

The pain stopped suddenly as the pull of power abruptly halted. The cessation of pain was a disorienting as its abrupt start had been. Kimihiro straightened with surprise, his movements somewhat jerky, and retreated from the ward's centre. His limbs still dragged with exhaustion but it didn't feel like he was going to slip into the second world at any second.

He glanced at the blank painting that looked so insignificant in the centre of the wide-flung ward set into the foyer floor. The black canvas appeared dull and lifeless, only the silver set in the frame glinting under on the lights. It might be sealed for now but he couldn't rest until the cursed thing was sent to Yuuko. He withdrew the pocket watch and summoned Ryuu.

There was a moment of short intense pain that steadied into a dull ache. The gold dragon was once more in its miniscule form but it had appeared. After a brief twining dance on his palm, the small construct leapt to the floor and began to run around the ward, touching the silver poles with a touch of its snout or a flick of its tail.

The ward began to glow with the customary golden light in the construct's wake, black marble turning to blazing gold. After personally warding the painting for such a length of time, even the simple act of feeding the construct was physically painful at this point. Nowhere near as bad as the acting as the ninth point but enough to have him gratefully accepting Hikideshi's aid as the butler came up his side and took his arm.

As the final silver point was touched, eight lines of gold surged upward. There was no hesitation, no waver of the lines as they rose to enclose the ward in a cage of gold. With a flare that he felt as a tearing pain in his chest and eye, the ward flashed, transporting the painting to the corresponding ward in Yuuko's shop. There was no resistance like there had been with the relic from Canar. The painting was there one moment and then gone as soon as the gold lines faded and died back.

Even as Ryuu came back across the foyer, Hikideshi was steering Kimihiro to the stairs. As Kimihiro found himself gently lowered to sit on the bottom step he reflected that this was beginning to be a bad habit.

Hikideshi seemed to agree. He bent a firm stare on his master and then moved to the ward, removing the silver poles one by one and placing them into the warded trunk in which they were usually stored.

Kimihiro watched, leaning against the banister rails as he held out the hand grasping the watch to the construct that had trailed after them. Ryuu leapt up onto the offered palm and resettled itself onto the metal surface, sinking down into the gold image once more. Kimihiro fingered the smooth surface for a moment then placed the watch into his pocket.

It wasn't until Hikideshi had packed away the last pole and replaced the trunk that housed them behind the staircase that Kimihiro pulled out the gold bracelet. The links were warm in his hand, pushing aside the remaining pain in his chest and the ache which had been steadily building in his right eye.

"How long will it last?" It was telling that Hikideshi hadn't offered him anything else since he had returned. He could only assume that the concoction that had been forced on him didn't deal well in conjunction with others.

That he was still functional was a testament to its strength. Willpower could only do so much.

The butler had come to stand before him. His dark gaze left the bracelet in Kimihiro's hand and he met the lord's stare. "It would be best if my lord retired soon."

But Kimihiro didn't move from his seat at the bottom of the steps. His gaze fell on the bracelet. "Yuuko gave it to me."

Hikideshi's eyes returned to the bracelet. "Lady Watanuki knew that she would not be with you at the end."

"The end." Kimihiro's fingers closed around the fragile links.

But it was not a question and Hikideshi did not answer.

Eventually Kimihiro reached up to the banister, starting to pull himself up. Hikideshi was immediately there to help him to his feet. "I think I'll retire, now." His voice was soft and the bracelet was still gripped tightly in his hand.

But Hikideshi did not move to help him up the stairs. The butler's dark gaze was turned towards the direction of the estate's gates. "Two carriages."

Kimihiro recalled the two vehicles he had seen on the drive of the Halstead estate. It seemed that the lord had finally discovered the theft of his painting.

"My lord?" Hikideshi cast him a questioning gaze.

Kimihiro closed his eyes for a moment. There was nothing to be done but face Lord Halstead. Simply refusing entry wasn't going to do anything. It would probably cause more problems in the long run.

He pushed Hikideshi gently aside and steadied himself on the rail of the banister. "Let him in."

Hikideshi bowed. "My lord." And moved to open the door.

xXx

Hikideshi opened the door and Lord Halstead entered without regard for politeness or caution.

He stepped into the mansion as if he had every right to be there. Eyes moving in disdain over the undecorated foyer and narrowing once he caught sight of the lord at the bottom of the stairs.

He was a solid man. His greying hair sat a top a face that was strong yet beginning to fall with age. He wore an immaculate suit of dark grey, the grey jacket he wore bearing darkred branches holding scarlet leaves. It was clothing befitting a special occasion and Kimihiro wondered what the discovery of the missing painting had interrupted.

But he didn't have time to think further on the lord's business. The man was striding across the foyer, crossing the elaborate ward on the floor as if he had no idea of its meaning. Or that the sacred symbol was unworthy of his attention.

Brown eyes flicked over the pale lord's attire and Lord Halstead's wide mouth tightened in a shaded expression of distaste. He stopped several meters away, as if to come closer would subject him to the taint that was linked to the reclusive lord.

"Lord Kimihiro! I demand that you return my property!" The loud voice was practically a shout. As if the lord felt that some show of force was necessary in order to deal with the man he confronted.

Kimihiro winced. Not at the volume - but at the bubbling black filth that trailed behind the man. It wasn't as bad as it usually would have been with the lord standing on the black marble of the wards, but it was bad enough.

He fought the urge to cover his mouth. "Lord Halstead. What brings you to my estate?" He concentrated on keeping his voice inflectionless, revealing only polite enquiry.

The lord's mouth hardened. "The sheer gall! My famed painting has gone missing and your carriage has been spotted on my estate." He lifted one hand and pointed in a threatening gesture. "I demand what is rightfully mine to be returned." He cast a disdainful glance around the foyer. "The Kimihiro line has fallen indeed to be left to a madman who steals like a common cur."

Kimihiro's fingers twitched. "I have taken nothing of yours." His voice was even yet a cooler edge had crept in. "Lady Halstead asked me to take in one of her stableboys and I have done so."

It was true in a way. The painting had not belonged to the lord when he had taken it. It had already gained possession of itself and was acting by its own will. And he was certain that if Lady Halstead had been able to speak, she would have asked him to do as he had done.

Lord Halstead's eyes narrowed at the mention of his wife. The trailing darkness behind him began to bubble, rising in unsightly forms that twisted up and fell back into the mass they had spawned from. Kimihiro tightened his grip on the banister, his knuckles whitening as he fought against the urge to throw up the little he had eaten that morning.

"I demand that my property be returned at once!" Eyes flashing and face reddening, Lord Halstead was oblivious to Kimihiro's discomfort. The demand in his words held the confidence of a man used to getting his own way. And as Kimihiro tried to push aside the weak feeling that was causing his arm to tremble, he was forcibly reminded exactly how the lord had been able to achieve those aims in the past.

As if sensing his attention, the bubbling blackness behind the angry lord started to creep across the marble floor towards the staircase. An eager tide that slowly rolled over black and white marble to the source of Lord Halstead's anger.

Lord Halstead suddenly turned to the doorway and addressed the man who was entering. "Your Highness, I seek a ruling."

The darkness roiling across the floor suddenly retreated, falling back to Lord Halstead's shadow.

Kimihiro's eyes lifted from the retreating threat and met the impassive eyes of Prince Doumeki as he stepped into the foyer.

It all clicked into place with horrid clarity. The prince had been Lord Halstead's guest. The interfering man had probably gone to investigate the matter himself when Kimihiro had refused to give him any more details. And no doubt the lord had seized upon the chance to show the prince the painting.

Lord Halstead looked back to Kimihiro and his eyes filled with satisfaction as he saw the expression on the lord's face. He seemed to take Kimihiro's paling face as fear of being found guilty. By the Southern Keeper, no less.

Doumeki handed his coat - black with gently curving autumn grasses embroidered on hem and sleeves - to Hikideshi. His eyes scanned the foyer before finally settling on the ward. "Lord Halstead. Your painting was rather large."

The lord turned his head, though his gaze kept boring into Kimihiro. "At least three by two metres." He seemed to take the request for information as a prelude to a search of the mansion. His mouth curved into a slight smile that conveyed satisfaction laced with vindictiveness.

Doumeki looked from the ward to Kimihiro, who was still holding onto the banister, and back again. His voice had a thoughtful tone when he asked his next question. "And your servants saw Lord Watanuki's carriage leave the estate soon before it was realized that the painting was missing?"

Lord Halstead's eyes narrowed at the use of the lord's correct title. He turned his eyes to the prince, ignoring Kimihiro's silent presence in favour of the man of more importance. "They did, Your Highness. You yourself heard their words."

Doumeki pinned the lord with a suddenly cool gaze. "Then I fail to see how Lord Watanuki could have stolen your painting. It could never have fit within his carriage and those who saw the carriage made no mention of seeing the painting itself." His gaze chilled. "Laying false accusations is a serious matter, Lord Halstead."

The lord's mouth opened only to close once he realized what the prince had said. His dark eyes darted to Kimihiro with a vicious glare before turning back to engage the prince. "Your-"

But Doumeki's gaze had turned to Kimihiro. "Lord Watanuki."

Kimihiro's hand was still tightly clenched on the banister. The awful sensation caused by the darkness trailing Lord Halstead had dimmed in the prince's warding presence. But with its retreat he was becoming aware of that the weakness he had been feeling was not only caused by the dark incursion within the wards.

But Doumeki had offered a way out of the current situation.

His eyes met Doumeki's. "Your Highness. I swear by my ancestors that I do not have Lord Halstead's painting."

Lord Halstead could not contain his rage. "You would take this man's word as truth?" He had dropped honorifics entirely and gestured contemptuously at Kimihiro.

Doumeki didn't even blink. Simply levelled a cool stare on the angry lord. "Yes."

Lord Halstead's mouth twisted. With one last glare at Kimihiro, he turned and stalked from the foyer, storming through the door Hikideshi held open. The trail of subdued darkness flaring out behind him.

As soon as he left the doorway, the butler firmly closed the door behind him.

Kimihiro's fingers flexed on the banister. It was hard to believe that it was over so easily. But now that it was he was suddenly aware of how cold he was. It was freezing.

A warm weight settled on his shoulders. Autumn grasses on black. The prince's coat. Kimihiro blinked and looked up to see Doumeki standing next to him, staring at him with an indecipherable expression.

He blinked again. It showed how badly shaken he was that he had forgotten the presence of Doumeki of all people. He was hard to ignore.

Doumeki seemed to take his silence as some signal. The prince suddenly took hold of his free hand and pulled him away from the stairs.

Kimihiro's frantic grasp at the banister failed and he found himself being pulled up against the man's side, an arm going around his shoulders.

As if he was incapable of standing without aid.

Warmth flared up into Kimihiro's cheeks, a painful contrast with the cold that was starting to make his bones ache. "Let go!" He hissed.

Doumeki raised an eyebrow at the protest. "I can carry you if you want."

Kimihiro's mouth fell open. There was no mistaking it. The man was actually serious.

He glanced over at Hikideshi for help but the butler was already leading the way to the study. No help from that quarter.

Kimihiro glanced back at Doumeki who seemed to be waiting for his offer to be accepted. "No." It was practically choked out. But at least it was said. Kimihiro got the feeling that prince would have followed up on his words if he hadn't refused by a certain time.

Doumeki seemed to take that answer as preference to the aid he already offered and started to follow the butler, pulling Kimihiro along with him.

With Hikideshi already ahead of them and in apparent agreement, Kimihiro had no choice but to go along with it. He tried to ignore the lingering warmth of the coat, the way his hand was gripped by Doumeki's and the arm across his shoulders. But by the time they arrived at the study he was feeling far less steady.

So much so that he only gave Doumeki a glare when the man tucked his coat more firmly around the lord after seeing him seating in his usual chair. The prince ignored the angry stare and took his own seat across the table.

Hikideshi didn't even wait for instructions but left the room, closing the door quietly behind him.

"You sent the painting to Yuuko?"

Kimihiro's eyes flicked back from the door to the prince. With nothing edible on the table, the prince's gaze was focused entirely on the lord. Kimihiro found it highly unsettling.

"Yes."

Doumeki's eyes moved slightly. "Was it linked to Lady Halstead's sudden illness?"

Kimihiro's gaze lowered. The entire thing had turned into a colossal mess. He had hesitated. And as a result Lady Halstead was in the Northern Ward. And the painting had come close to encountering the man who he had been trying to protect.

For there was no other reason for Lord Halstead to have discovered the painting's disappearance when the prince was his guest if that was not the case.

He had been careless and had almost met with catastrophe.

Hikideshi's re-entrance interrupted the lengthening silence. He took one look at the wilting posture of his lord and the prince's watchful sprawl and moved to set the tray he carried onto the table. The tea service rattled as the butler's grip on the tray slipped. A peculiar expression crossed Hikideshi's face before vanishing.

"Hikideshi?" Kimihiro was alarmed. Hikideshi had never even misplaced a teaspoon on a saucer before.

"The outer ward has been damaged." His voice held its usual modulated tones but his eyes were dark flickers.

The warmth from the coat and the fireplace faded in a flash of icy terror. But it slowly retreated as a warmth in his hand increased. It wasn't until he looked down that Kimihiro realized that he had retrieved the gold bracelet from his pocket.

Doumeki's sharp eyes were on the piece even as he asked, "Damaged?"

But Kimihiro was already shakily rising from his seat. "Does it still hold?" His fingers reached to hold the prince's coat on his shoulders even as his eyes kept locked with the butler's.

"It does." Hikideshi set down the tray on the table and began laying out teacups. A plate of pastries. "But not entirely."

There was something wrong with him. He seemed unable to draw in a full breath. It was so cold.

A hand on his shoulder brought him back. Kimihiro found himself being forcefully pushed back into his chair. Doumeki leaned over him, hand still on his shoulder. "I'll go. Stay here." He punctuated his words with tightened grip, gold eyes staring into his intensely.

Kimihiro managed a nod.

The prince turned to talk to Hikideshi but Kimihiro didn't hear their words. He was staring at the gold bracelet clenched tightly in his trembling hand.

The end.

xXx

Doumeki flung open the door and jumped out of the carriage before it had even stopped coasting to a halt. He immediately strode to the gate of the Watanuki estate. Even from his position just inside the open gateway he could see that there was something wrong. As he came closer it became abundantly clear what had caused the break in the wards.

One of the unicorns that flanked the open gates. The one that the crow had perched on.

It had once stood proudly as a guardian. Powerfully muscled hindquarters emerging from an arch in the boundary wall. The sleek, muscled torso held poised; tall and imposing, a living image in stone. Neck arched and horn lowered threateningly as one foreleg was slightly lifted in prelude to a challenging paw at the ground.

But no more.

The horn was gone. As was half of its face.

All that was left was a mutilated face and a crumbling wreck of a lower jaw. A broken stub was all that was left of the horn. The damage to the unicorn's face started just below it, cutting in diagonally down to sheer through the edge of the unicorn's lower jaw.

The damage was all the same height and on the same angle. As if something had brushed past and sheered off the most prominent points.

The transferred black paint on the edge of the rough break when he looked closer proved his suspicions. Lord Halstead's carriage. There was no other possibility. Though whether it had been deliberate or otherwise...

He looked down at the broken fragments that had once been part of the statue. A large chunk of muzzle had fallen almost directly below. But the horn and other fragments had scattered over the road with the force of the impact.

Doumeki's hand clenched as he recalled the look of sheer terror that had flown across Kimihiro's face. He had never seen the man look so raw before and it had alarmed him in turn.

Kimihiro was truly terrified of being vulnerable to what lurked outside his wards.

The prince took off his jacket and laid it on the ground as he knelt to collect the broken fragments. As he laid the collected pieces onto the garment, he was thinking over what could be done in the situation.

By the time he stood, the broken pieces held in his jacket, Doumeki had made up his mind.

xXx

The prince had gone. He had elicited a promise from Kimihiro not to leave the estate until he had returned and then left. Leaving the fragments of the broken unicorn with Hikideshi who had carefully gathered them up and taken them away.

Kimihiro had retreated to his room after Doumeki left. Hikideshi had insisted that he retire and Kimihiro hadn't any energy to protest. Nor did he want to. He keenly felt the need to retreat to his private chambers.

It was the most intensely warded place on the entire estate.

Hikideshi had helped him to his room and eased him out of the clothes he was wearing into one of his customary robes. He had left Kimihiro sitting in the chair set by the window, a blanket thrown over him, as he left to prepare some tea.

Kimihiro now stared out his window. The sight outside his window terrified him in way he had never experienced before.

There were spirits on the drive. There weren't many of them but the fact that they were present within the boundaries of the estate was enough to make him physically ill. The ward on the boundary had been in existence since the estate had come into being. It had warded against spirits for centuries and none had succeeded in breaking its protection.

Until now.

Now spirits were leaking past the gouge in the ward. It was only a trickle at the moment, and most of those that had managed to pass had done so through sheer luck rather than any power. But there was a way now and it was certain that more would follow.

And when those that had hunted the Watanuki line heard of it, they would seek to wrench the clink wider yet. Some protections still held yet but they would expend their efforts to shattering the entire ward, bringing down the boundary which had long thwarted their advances.

And then there would only be the defences of the mansion left. No doubt their next goal would be seek the fall of the building, stripping him of his last protection. Even now the spirits outside eyed him hungrily, sensing his presence within but unable to approach any closer. Their boiling frustration and covetous gaze made him feel like a display in a butcher's front window.

No doubt it would be worse once They found him. They had been waiting a long time and access to the estate would send them into a frenzy. It was only a matter of time until they showed up.

His gaze travelled up the drive to the broken statue at the side of the estate gate. He couldn't see it at this distance but the image of the broken unicorn, its horn reduced to a mere stub and half its face shorn away, was burned into his mind.

It was the exact same image he had seen in the painting before it had been sealed.

xXx

So in the end, Kimihiro paid a heavy price for his interference. And the use of the wards from the box. But it was only to be expected. It had to equal some of what vampirebait!Watanuki went through in getting it. And the repercussions of that continued on beyond Blood Price. A very expensive box.

And now things are starting to move.

xXx

And that ends the first arc Supernatural Entanglements. The next set are under the heading of Entwining Fates (yes, I am obsessed with numbers and divisions. How sad :) which will bring us up to Masqued Intentions and what will follow (I am also slow). Basically all you need to do is keep coming here - I'm just going to shove it all together so you, my dear readers, don't have to worry about more story alerts.

Present Reality will be the next instalment. If all goes well, it should go up in a few weeks. It leads directly on from this one and I'll try to get it up as soon as possible.


	25. Interlude Smoke & Blossoms

AN: No, this isn't Present Reality (it should go up within a week). It's simply a case that Haruka insisted that I tell you more. So I have.

Interlude - Smoke & Blossoms

Smoke curled up. White curls that slowly twisted as they rose, slowly shifting ribbons connecting earth and sky. The pale insubstantial ropes stood out in sharp contrast with the black sky and its rain of pink petals.

The breeze that constantly flowed through the dreamscape suddenly shifted. The leisurely coiling smoke was suddenly dispersed, shredded on the cool invisible current. The wind picked up, raking through the branches that curved overhead, spilling fragile pink on endless black.

The man sitting under the weeping cherry tree watched as petals tumbled through the air. A violent ballet that was stunningly beautiful. A hand reached out to catch the falling fragments. They gathered quickly, a carpet of soft pink petals that covered his palm and spilled through his fingers to fall to the ground below. The snow had vanished, melted away to reveal the new growth of grass that covered the slope leading down to the pond. But a thin carpet of pink petals half-hid the lush grass.

Haruka tilted his hand sideways and let the petals he had captured fall to the ground. The pale pink flakes fell, turning as they fell through the air. A few fluttered sideways to land on the hem of his kimono and settle on his feet.

Haruka barely noticed, already staring appraisingly up at the branches that draped overhead. Despite the scatter of blossoms on the ground, there were still buds that had not opened. Masses of blossoms still clustered thickly on the weeping branches.

There was still time.

Haruka raised his cigarette back to his lips and let his gaze shift to the pond. Gold eyes narrowed as they caught sight of a bow wave that cut through the smooth surface. A weak vee of ripples that marked the movements of something just below the surface.

As if sensing his gaze, it abruptly stopped, the bow wave suddenly ending as whatever had caused it descended into the pond's depths once more. The line of ripples slowly dispersed, waves gradually smoothing out until the surface was still once more. It was as if the disturbance had never been.

But Haruka had seen it and knew what had caused it still lurked below the surface.

The thin ribbons curled up once more through the cherry branches above. Haruka sat on the stone bench beneath, cigarette held lightly between his lips, eyes fixed on the water.

xXx

Doumeki holds the Southern Ward. Haruka holds something else.

There is actually a reason why I'm giving this to you now. Everything here means something - some of it is blatant and some things won't make sense till the end. And I wanted you all to read it separate from the next instalment.


	26. Present Reality I

Yay! Another update! But before you dive into I'm going to take the chance to mention a few things. Feel free to skip this and start reading if you want :D

First of all replies to some of my anonymous reviewers who I haven't been able to contact:

**zeynal**: Well, I hope so :D That's good to hear - I wouldn't want to bore you now, would I? XD And you certainly will.

**Silent Skies**: You're welcome! It's lovely to hear from you and I'm very sorry that I haven't done this earlier. I'm glad you got something out of it - I'm sure you've already got a bit of an idea of what's going on :D

Second, I've had a few people say they've had a few problems with loading pages. If find that's the case, feel free to dart over to my LJ (link in my profile). All my fic is posted there and LJ seems to be somewhat more reliable in my experience.

Last but not least, if you want to have some pictures along with your reading, I suggest you check out some of the beautiful illustrations AngelicFayth has been producing. They're absolutely beautiful and well-worth a look. You can find them here: angelic-fayth./gallery/

Anyway, enough from me. On with the story :D And we're off with a bang. More answers. More questions. What more could you want? (Don't answer that. LOL)

xXx

Dreaming, waking...sometimes it's hard to know what is worse.

Entwining Fates:

Present Reality

I

**It was dark. Fading light seeped through the broken window, turning the spray of jagged glass into brilliant crystals. Only the slender pale arm and the dark liquid spreading out from beneath it dimmed their reflective glisten.**

**There was silence. The horses had stopped their frantic screaming hours before. The high, nearly unearthly noise had stopped suddenly to be replaced with more disturbing sounds that were not quite discernable. Noises that didn't fit into the sounds of a normal world. Now there was only a heavy silence that was occasionally broken by the cutting calls of the crows; the hungry cries and the angry squawks that broke out among them as they argued over the possession of their meal.**

**The child in the carriage stayed where he was, held in protective arms. His eyes remained fixed on the glitter of the glass, ignoring the tears in the upholstery, the splinters of broken wood that were spread throughout the cabin. The beams that were broken and lay spread out like jagged wooden spears.**

**The splashes of dark liquid that were revealed by a reflective glisten or the dark shadows of blank pools. **

**The light was suddenly blocked out. Dark blue eyes slowly looked up to see the cause of the shadow that was flung across the shredded upholstery and turned the glass into dull translucency.**

**Something dark peered inside the window. Eyes like small yellow lanterns brightened and teeth more jagged than the glass revealed themselves in the open folds of the flesh that served as lips. It stared at the two bodies and the young child folded, half hidden, in their protective clasp. The smile widened and it leaned forward, scraping against the shards of glass still held by the window frame. Blood smeared the remaining fragments as one discoloured hand clamped down on the wood.**

**The boy shrank back into the lax embrace that held him pinned. There was no longer warmth - that had long faded along with breath and voice. Only an envelope of unanimated flesh that held no more protection. **

**Foul breath expelled from the half-open mouth. "Finally." A voice like gravel under a millstone. "I've got you." Dark laughter filled the confines of the fallen carriage as it reached forward to claim its prize.**

Kimihiro shot upright, one hand clutching at his right eye, the other at his chest. His heart thumped wildly in the confines of his chest - he could almost feel the palpitations under his hand. A sharp pain was twisting in his eye and he ground the heel of his hand into the socket as if to smear the memories out of existence.

Taking in a shaky breath, he reached out to the dresser at the side of his bed and picked up the watch from where it always lay when he was asleep. The cool metal was comfortingly solid in his grasp and Kimihiro closed his eyes, focusing on the feel of it in his hand. Eventually his heart began to slow and the pain lancing through his eye started to fade.

He suspected it was the loss of the outer boundary that rattled him so. He hadn't had dreams like this for a long time. Not since he had taken up his self-imposed mission and accepted that he would do everything in his power before his fate eventually found him.

And until recently he had even began to nurse the fragile hope that he could avoid it entirely.

There was a knock at the door and a few moments later it opened to reveal Hikideshi. The butler was fully dressed as he always was and held a tray that was comfortingly familiar. Whenever Kimihiro had experienced such dreams in the past, the man had unfailingly arrived at his side soon after, armed with the same soothing concoction. He wasn't a child anymore but he still found comfort in the gesture.

"Tea, my lord?" Hikideshi was laying the tray on the dresser by the bed.

Kimihiro nodded, pushing back the fall of his loose hair from his face. It was getting longer than he usually left it, strands falling down around his face. He sat up, back against the headboard of the bed and pushed his loose hair behind his ears, glad that it was long enough that it didn't continue to fall forward. He was going to have to cut it soon, though. The longer it was, the messier it tended to get.

There was the sound of pouring liquid and he turned to see Hikideshi pouring tea into one of the delicate cherry blossom teacups. Kimihiro always used the same set. It had belonged to his mother and had always been her favoured possession. The feel of the smooth delicate surface beneath his fingers always helped him to relax, to feel that he was once again connected to her in some small way.

He accepted the cup that Hikideshi handed to him, his fingers automatically cradling the fragile vessel as they had so many times in the past. He took a sip. If Hikideshi had added anything he didn't taste it. Not that he was actively searching for anything. At the moment he wasn't really adverse to one of the butler's calming potions.

"Lord Watanuki."

He looked up to see the butler had not left the room. Instead he was standing in a formal manner that made Kimihiro lower the cup in his hand to rest in his lap.

"The wards will hold while I still exist." The black eyes were earnest, a dark promise. He bowed deeply and then picked up the tray, leaving the room silently, the thick carpet masking any sound of his passage.

Kimihiro drank from fragile cherry blossom cup, trying to stop the tears that suddenly stung his eyes.

xXx

Doumeki found himself staring up at the mural on the ceiling without knowing why. One moment he was asleep and the next fully awake, staring at the dark blue eyes that gazed back blankly down at him.

A deep uneasiness grew within him and he rolled up one elbow, looking across at the broken arrow.

It lay on the desk where it had been set before he had retired. There was no sign that it had been disturbed and there was nothing to suggest that it was more than wood and feathers. But simply looking at it made his insides crawl in dread.

Doumeki threw back the covers and padded across the thick carpet. The night was unnaturally quiet as he made his way to the desk. There was no chirrup of insects, no squeak of bats. He picked the arrow up, and frowned down at the broken shaft, the immaculate fletching. It wasn't the source of the feeling as much as a trigger for it. His fingers ran lightly over the jagged splinters, a pressure light enough to feel every sharp edge without tearing skin. The prince's frown became slightly puzzled.

Something hit the window.

Doumeki span, arrow clutched tightly in one hand.

Black wings battered against the glass. In the shadows cast across the window, it was hard to see but there was no mistaking the sound. The glass rattled as the bird pressed up against the invisible barrier.

It seemed to sense his stare. Milky eyes glittered malevolently through the thin panes as blackened talons scratched at the invisible barrier. The high sound of the glass giving under the force filled the silence, causing the prince to wince. The sound stopped in the instant he broke eye contact.

Doumeki's eyes shot back to the window.

It was gone. Only the rapid beating of his heart told him that it had even happened. Had it been a dream? The shaft of the arrow in his hand was cool and unyielding in his grasp.

A crow...

Doumeki was suddenly filled with the urgent need to see Kimihiro. Slightly shaken, he turned to his wardrobe, intent on getting changed.

The darkness hid the faint scratches on the glass behind him.

xXx


	27. Present Reality II

Entwining Fates:

Present Reality

II

Dawn was breaking by the time Doumeki's carriage arrived at the entrance of the Watanuki estate. The prince looked out the window as the carriage drew close to the gate. The defaced unicorn slid into view, the broken face looking like a crushed horse skull had been affixed to the intact stone neck. By some trick of the morning light, the broken sockets set above the ravaged muzzle appeared to have glitters within the dark concaves. It was an eerie sight and Doumeki felt the sense of foreboding that had awoken him return.

His gaze turned to the interior of the carriage as it jolted slightly on the bar of iron set into the drive. The frame was polished wood, unmarred except for a single thread of warding lines that traced through the cabin. The upholstery was a bright red, with flowing patterns in black and gold. It was a sharp contrast with ancient carriage that Kimihiro used.

The thought brought to mind the purpose of his visit and Doumeki frowned. No carriages had entered or exited the Watanuki estate since the incident with Lord Halstead. Kimihiro had kept to his promise not to leave the grounds until he returned.

Alastaire had been waiting for Doumeki when he arrived back at the Southern Ward that afternoon. He had come in person to follow up on the initial written report. There hadn't been much progress. Though Fai and Kurogane had sifted through all the evidence at Lord Hinata's warehouse, nothing else had had shown up.

There was nothing except for the remains of most of the cats and dogs from the quay district and an unidentified man.

Movement in the corner of his eye drew Doumeki's gaze to the window once more. Someone was walking down the drive on the thin strip of grass left between the hedge and the gravel drive. An older man to judge by his iron grey hair but he walked with the vigour of a younger man. A quick glance over his clothes suggested he was a farm worker but he moved with a quiet confidence which was at odds with the image. The man bowed his head as the carriage passed and Doumeki's eyes narrowed as he saw the package gripped in his hand.

Doumeki leaned back as the man passed out of sight. Another client. It was clear that while Kimihiro hadn't left the estate since the outer ward had been damaged, he was still attending to problems that were being brought to his door. It a way it was surprising that he hadn't left the estate. The lord was dedicated to his duty and even with the damage to the mansion's defences, Doumeki was certain that he would leave the grounds to deal with a problem if it arose.

And that was why he was here today.

The carriage started to slow and Doumeki looked out the window once more to see the familiar black and white mansion. It looked different in the dawn light. The white stone was stark in the growing light and the windows shadowed in their frames. Even the warding dragons perched on the roof and the corners of the building were partly shadowed in the slanting light, their eyes dark concaves that mirrored the ruined unicorn at the gate.

For the first time the building seemed vulnerable.

The carriage drew to a smooth halt before the stairs that led to the mansion entrance. The cabin rocked slightly as the footman jumped down from the driver's perch and moved to open the door. Doumeki stepped out with barely a glance at the man. His gaze was on the wide nine-paned window above the carved ward set over the entrance. The window of the master bedroom. There was no shifting of curtains to indicate that the lord was looking out, no movement behind the panes to indicate that he was within at all.

Doumeki's eyes fell to the two unicorns set to either side of the staircase's bottom step. They were intact, sharp horns lowered in challenge and eyes set in equine glares of rage, just as intimidating as ever. Just as the nine coiling serpents carved on rising faces of the stairs were a clear reminder of the ever-increasing wards building in strength the closer one came to the building. It was still warded as strongly as it had been.

Reassuring. But only if he intended to have Kimihiro stay behind the cold stone.

He didn't.

Doumeki crossed the few feet separating the carriage from the stairs and started up the serpent-guarded steps. As the prince set foot within the triangular crescent ward on the portico he only got a brief glimpse of the snarling bronze dragon on the door before it opened.

"Your Highness." Hikideshi stood within the foyer, holding the door open while he passed within. Doumeki handed the butler his coat and turned his attention to the space he had just entered.

Doumeki's gaze scanned over the foyer, eyes flicking over the stark black and white space. No Kimihiro. His eyes lifted to the second floor landing. No robed figure stood glaring down at him. He turned a questioning glance back to Hikideshi.

The butler was standing near the door, his dark eyes watching the prince from an expressionless face. For a moment Doumeki got the feeling that he was being measured in some way but then the dark eyes lowered and the sensation was gone. "Lord Watanuki is in the dining room." Another glance from dark eyes. "If you would follow me." The man turned and started to walk from the foyer, turning left into the corridor that lead into the west wing.

Doumeki followed, looking around him curiously. He had only ever been in the foyer, the study and the corridor that linked them. Even when he had dropped in unexpectedly for a meal, it had been served in the study. Now as he walked to the dinning room he was left with the prospect of seeing more of the reclusive lord's home.

The corridor was much like the one he had traversed before. A long white expanse marked by closed doors of dark wood, each carved with a sprawling ward featuring the Watanuki crest. Warding lines snaked along the walls and ceiling in place of wallpaper and decorative mouldings. The floor was the same white marble as the foyer, with wards marking its width precisely every five meters. It was stark and unwelcoming, concerned with protection and nothing else.

Doumeki's gaze turned to the straight back of the man who walked in front of him. The man was as much a mystery as the master he served. Was he the only servant that lived in the mansion? Doumeki had never seen any other and from the look of the mansion, half of it was closed up. For all he knew, only a few rooms of the large building were in use.

His thoughts were cut short by Hikideshi's sudden stop before him. They had reached the end of the corridor and the butler stood next a door, hand resting lightly on the door handle. The door was like those that they had passed before, an imposing panel of dark wood with a ward carved into the smooth surface. The decoration on this door was also set with silver leaf, the thin metal laid within the lines carved into the door. Hikideshi cast him a glance, much like the one he had give the prince in the foyer, and opened the door.

As soon as he entered the room, Doumeki felt the difference. It was more alive than any of the other rooms that he had seen thus far. The dining room was enormous. Stretching at least ten by twenty metres, light streamed in through three windows on the north wall and more faintly through the two set to the west. Curtains of heavy pale blue fabric, decorated in geometric designs of darker blue, were tied back from the windows revealing the glint of thick silver scrolling around the window frames. Thick black warding lines ran across ceiling and the walls yet somehow managed to blend with the dove grey of the walls, appearing as tasteful decoration rather than the strong protections they were.

The open space was dominated by a large dinning table that ran the length of the room. A deep blue table cloth, decorated with thin gold patterns of vines and leaves ran its length. It was covered in turn by a white runner which was set precisely in the centre of the table and weighted down by five candleholders of heavy silver. Ornately carved wooden chairs surrounded the long table, their polished backs gleaming in the light streaming in from the windows. Only one was occupied. Lord Kimihiro sat at the head of the table.

For once the lord was wearing something other than the robes Doumeki usually saw him in. It wasn't the usual thing a lord might wear in his own manor, but Kimihiro was nothing if not unusual. The lord wore a strange coat-like garment with a high neck and long sleeves that widened slowly until they hung open to reveal their red lining at the wrists. Delicate embroidery of scarlet, silver and gold ran in a series of crossing ripples across the black fabric, each beginning at a starting point of shoulder, waist and knee, radiating out to cross each other where they overlapped. The ankle-length skirts of the coat fell open to reveal the black trousers, plain but for the twining red dragons at the hems, he wore beneath. It all combined to create a relaxed but refined look. One which would have worked if not for the dark shadows that formed crescents under his dark eyes.

Kimihiro looked up in surprise as the door opened. His eyes widened when he saw who stood in the doorway but soon shrank under the weight of resignation. He reached over to one of the nearby chairs sitting to the side of the table and pulled it back in silent invitation.

Doumeki took in the barely touched breakfast before the slender man and walked over to pull out the offered chair. Kimihiro watched until he had settled then let his gaze fall back to the plate that sat in front of him. After a brief glance at the prince, Hikideshi left the room and shut the door with a muffled click. Doumeki sat in the chair, eyes fixed on the silent lord. His gaze was avoided and the lord went back to picking at his meal. Doumeki said nothing, opting to continue his examination of the room. The prince felt no inclination to talk and Kimihiro would say something when he was ready.

Doumeki's eyes fell on the west wall which glittered in the increasing light that fell through the open windows. A multitude of paintings, enclosed in elaborate gilt frames, covered the wall. They were portraits, individuals dressed in costumes that spanned the centuries, a gallery of ancestors that observed the room with dark shadowed eyes. But what caught the prince's eye was a large canvas that hung on the centre of the wall. Its size and the thick gold frame that enclosed the image made it stand out from the rest of the paintings that decorated the room. That and the lighter colours that made it day to the others' night.

Like the others it was a portrait. Two people dominated the scene. The wards crawling along the walls in the background suggested that they were located somewhere in the mansion but it was a room that Doumeki hadn't seen before. A tall black-haired man stood in one half of the canvas, dressed in a black suit with gold dragons and green ripples embroidered at cuffs and hems. His dark eyes were cast down at the other occupant of the painting, one gloved hand laid lovingly on her shoulder. The woman in sat in an ornate chair that was half-hidden by her skirts. Her hand reached up to cover the hand that rested on her shoulder but she gazed out of the painting at the dinning hall. With eyes of a startling dark blue.

It was easy to see that Kimihiro had been born as a graceful meld of the two. The lord's fine unruly hair reflected the glossy coils that were piled on Lady Watanuki's head and the flowing length of his father's with its unruly strands that had come free of their tie. Lord Watanuki's tall but skinny frame was nearly a perfect match but the pale flawless skin and deep blue unfathomable eyes clearly came from Kimihiro's mother.

But more than the people were familiar Doumeki realized as he scrutinized the painting more closely. He had seen several of the items depicted in the scene before. The silver pocket watch held in the lord's hand and the gold bracelet hanging from the lady's slender wrist. They were identical to the objects that Kimihiro now carried. The watch that housed the small gold dragon and the gold bracelet that Kimihiro had been clutching to so tightly when Doumeki had last seen him.

He turned to Kimihiro to find the lord watching him with dark eyes. With the slice of sunlight cast across the planes of his face, there were shadowed, masking whatever emotion might have otherwise shown in their dark depths. After a long silence he spoke. "My mother and father were second cousins. They had been friends since childhood and when the time came, decided to marry." Kimihiro's eyes lifted to the painting. "It was a brave thing to do. The Watanuki line had always been cursed with its strong attunement to the supernatural world and my parents were no exception. To combine the bloodline so..." Kimihiro's eyes fell. "It was a risk they were willing to take."

Doumeki waited silently for him to continue but it seemed that the lord had finished speaking. Several questions occurred to him but he finally settled on the most pressing. "What have you done since the ward was damaged?"

Kimihiro's eyes rose, narrowed into dark blue slices. "I haven't left the estate if that's what you're asking."

Doumeki was encouraged by the show of anger. Kimihiro was in a strange mood. It was better than the outright terror and exhaustion he had been showing before but the prince wasn't certain whether this was that much of an improvement. "I saw someone."

Kimihiro's mouth thinned. "Really?"

"A man on the drive this morning." It was prodding - Kimihiro hated interference and indulging in it was sure to get a get a reaction - but Doumeki was also curious. He watched Kimihiro's face for what it would tell him.

The dark blue eyes shifted slightly and he set down the silver fork he had holding precisely beside his plate. "A tenant."

It seemed he had stumbled onto something important. "And?" He reached out and snagged a piece of toast from the lord's full plate. It was plain, only smeared with melted butter, but it was happily welcomed by his empty stomach.

Kimihiro's right eye suddenly twitched, as his guest took a noisy bite. "As I am unable to leave the grounds at the moment." A pause in which he stabbed the prince with a look. "Even my tenants must come to see me when there are problems."

Doumeki finished the toast, idly rubbing his fingers together to shed the crumbs. He eyed the rest of the plate's contents. "What kind of problems?"

The dark blue eyes squeezed shut then opened again. Kimihiro lifted his plate and set it down firmly in front of the prince. A knife and fork followed, held out in a pale hand. "If you're going to eat, you can at least pretend that you know how to use the proper utensils." The words were angry but it was a peace offering of sorts. When Kimihiro gave away food he wasn't entirely angry.

"And you?" Kimihiro couldn't have had much to eat by the looks of it. The plate was nearly full and none of the dishes laid out before them looked like they had been touched.

"I've lost my appetite." Presumably because of present company.

The prince took the silver cutlery and speared a piece of bacon. "So?"

Kimihiro had been in the act of lifting his teacup but now it sank back onto its saucer. He shot Doumeki an irritated enquiry.

Doumeki ignored the signs of growing anger. "What was the problem?"

The pale lord seemed on the verge of a sharp retort when he suddenly shut his mouth. He actually seemed to consider the question seriously for a moment. "With the damage of the wards it was possible that there would be other problems within the estate lands." His hands closed around the teacup once more and he took a small sip. "I usually keep a close eye on things but now I am prevented from moving around as freely as I once did. Spirits have been steadily trickling through the wards."

Doumeki had stopped eating and he now gave the other man a sharp look. The front he now showed was very different from the terror he had shown a few days ago. He was now calmly accepting of the presence of spirits on his land when it had been one of his greatest fears.

But he still hadn't answered the question.

Kimihiro guessed what he was thinking. His eyes flashed over to his guest. "Some of my tenants are vulnerable to spirits. I gave them some charms for added protection."

Doumeki cut a slice of omelette and chewed on it thoughtfully as Kimihiro sipped at his tea. It was almost a companionable silence. Despite his irritation and the slightly worn look he bore, Kimihiro seemed more amendable than usual this morning. It was possible that his proposition would be much more easily expected. He expected some protest of course - Kimihiro wasn't one to accept aid easily - but Doumeki would get his way even if he had resort to a direct order.

Which he probably would.

There was a knock at the door. It swung open and Hikideshi entered the room with a bow. "My lord. A Lady Antwerp is here to see you."

Kimihiro's brow was slightly furrowed as he set his teacup back onto its saucer.

"I know you asked to remain undisturbed." A fleeting glance at Doumeki, who wondered whether he had been included in that and why he had been let in if that was the case. "But the lady was most insistent."

The dark blue eyes became wary. "Where is she?"

Another flicker of black eyes. "The lady is in the foyer. With her harp."

The emotion slipped away from Kimihiro's face, leaving it a calm marble mask. "Inform Lady Antwerp I will be there in a few moments."

"My lord." With a bow Hikideshi retreated, closing the door behind him.

Kimihiro stared at the closed door for a few moments before turning to Doumeki who had made fair progress on the contents of the plate and was eyeing the serving dishes. "Your Highness, if you would excuse me?"

Doumeki reached out and grabbed his arm to prevent him from rising. "I'm coming with you."

The calm facade was broken by a startled look. Brought up short by the grip on his arm, the lord sank back into his seat. "Your Highness. It wouldn't be wise for you to be seen here." He seemed to realize that the offer was genuine rather than offered out of any intent to annoy. Kimihiro lowered his eyes as he started to lift Doumeki's hand from his arm with cool fingers. "Being linked with me could destroy you."

Doumeki's grip loosened at those last words and Kimihiro took the opportunity to rise. "I will be back shortly."

Doumeki watched him go, light from the window shining on the metallic embroidery of his coat, still turning over the words in his head. Destroy you. Why had it sounded like that had been advice won from previous experience?

xXx

Why indeed?

xXx


	28. Present Reality III

Entwining Fates:

Present Reality

III

Kimihiro cursed himself as he shut the door to the dinning room. He could still see the startled widening of Doumeki's gold eyes as he lifted the man's hand off his arm. What had he been doing? He'd meant to give him a warning about the political ramifications of their association and he'd said that instead.

Doumeki wasn't stupid. He'd simply file Kimihiro's words away and bring them out once more when he had enough information to link it all together. Though Kimihiro had been trying to deflect the Keeper's attention away from the connection between Haruka and himself, he'd been giving away bits and pieces in a trickle that threatened to burst open and spill the entire story free.

He could only blame it on the dream. He had been feeling more vulnerable than he cared to remember since the wards had been damaged. It was one thing to have spirits waiting for him on the boundary of his land and quite another to have them waiting outside his front door. And after the dream of the past he had so desperately tried to escape but could never forget, he was all too aware of what the faltering ward meant.

He shivered. He had been able to see the spirits that had slipped through the wards when he looked out the windows of the dinning room. Their steadily-focused gaze had been enough to wipe out what remained of his appetite. He had almost been glad to have the excuse the prince provided to get out of eating the breakfast Hikideshi had forced on him.

This morning had been the first time out of his room since Doumeki had left. His experience as ninth point in the matter with Lord Halstead's painting had exhausted him more than had expected. It had only taken Hikideshi finding him passed out in the en suite the next morning to get him confined to bed until the butler had pronounced him able to move about on his own. Kimihiro had protested but was ultimately relieved. Confined to his room, he could simply sleep and concentrate on resting rather than the problems that lurked outside the walls.

But this morning with Yasu's arrival, he was reminded of his duties. His tenants had heard of his indisposition and had let him be, not willing to interrupt his rest. As the mansion still held, the shrine and its village was still protected. All the spirits which had slipped in through the damaged boundary had been directed by the funnelling effect of the drive straight to the mansion where they were caught by the remaining wards. But Kimihiro was aware that it might not stay that way. The ancient charms he had handed over should protect his people against anything that might stumble into the villages if they broke free.

But when he looked out the window and saw how the spirits massed out on the grounds, Kimihiro was reminded of the reality of the situation. If the mansion should fall then no one on his lands would be safe, no matter how powerful the charms they possessed. The thought had been on his mind all morning and the result was that he was not watching himself as closely as he should. He was rattled and he found himself saying more than he should have.

The truth was that part of him wanted to tell Doumeki everything. Tell him what was happening in the city and events that had lead to the current situation. Why the Keeper had to take more care of his own safety.

But he couldn't. Kimihiro knew what would happen when he told Doumeki what had passed, the ultimate cause of Haruka's withdrawal from his grandson and his death. And selfishly he kept putting off the time when he told Doumeki the truth that he was pursuing. He kept telling himself that it was because it was too soon, that his protection, his promise to Haruka meant that he had to hold back. But he knew it wasn't entirely the case.

Annoying and infuriating as Doumeki was, Kimihiro didn't want him to leave. It was a startling revelation but Kimihiro couldn't deny it any longer. The prince was his friend, or at least the closest thing he had to one. And he had started to depend on his presence just as he had with Haruka.

Kimihiro lifted his hand from the door handle and turned towards the foyer, face falling back into the polite blank lines he used with clients. It was almost a welcome relief to have the interruption. Even if it was almost certain that it was one that going to cost him.

xXx

Kimihiro was fully composed by the time he reached the foyer. Hikideshi saw him at once as he strode the last length of the corridor. The butler's dark eyes slid to his lord for a moment and then Hikideshi was bowing deeply, indicating the arrival of his master.

Lady Antwerp had been standing with her back to the west wing. As such Kimihiro had only been able to see the back of her bright scarlet dress. It was one of the newer fashions that were now so popular amongst the nobility with its long boned bodice fitted over her hips and the narrow skirt tied back to create an elaborate train decorated with ribbon, braid and tassels. A scarlet hat trimmed with large grey and black feathers topped off the ensemble.

It was only when she turned that Kimihiro finally saw her face. Normally the pale blue eyes, high cheek bones and small pink lips would have been praised for their cumulative beauty but the expression they bore made the flesh beneath unappealing. The pale blue eyes were narrowed into a frigid gaze, the lips tight with displeasure. The lady's expression didn't improve when she saw the lord she had come to call on without notice. The disdain that seemed to drip from her eyes as she took in his appearance had Kimihiro's polite mask becoming even more expressionless.

"Lord Kimihiro?" There was no respect in the query and the lady forbore from giving the customary curtesy that should have attended the meeting.

Kimihiro inclined his head. "Lady Antwerp." He got straight to the point. "I believe that you have a harp that you wished for me to look at." It was turning out to be an unpleasant encounter and he wanted it to be over with as soon as possible. Despite his earlier thoughts he found he'd rather be facing Doumeki's impossible questions than trying to blunt the edge of the displeasure that faced him.

"I was told that I you could ensure that certain items would become less troublesome." Her tone of voice made it clear that Lady Antwerp highly doubted the veracity of that information.

"That would depend on the item." Kimihiro keep his voice inflectionless and met her stabbing pale gaze with blank eyes. It seemed that Lady Antwerp was one of those who sought him out only because they had met with failure elsewhere. And by her manner he could tell that she had been listening to some of the less savoury rumours about him that were circulated throughout society.

Lady Antwerp seemed unimpressed. But apparently she really did have no choice. A sharp gesture at the servant who waited near the large box set in the foyer, had the man lifting the lid and then pulling out the item from within, setting it on the ground. He then stepped back, eyes trained firmly on his boots. Kimihiro felt somewhat uneasy at the well-trained action but turned his attention to the object which had been in the box.

It was, as Hikideshi had informed him, a harp. The thin fore pillar was carved from a deep red coloured wood traced through with thin black lines that flowed through the grain. The slanting soundboard and the curving neck, which rejoined soundboard and fore pillar, were of a slightly lighter colour. A line of gut strings, strung from neck to soundboard, were pale strong lines against the dark wood. It was old, at least several centuries old, and it gave off a familiar sensation.

Kimihiro walked over to confirm what he was feeling. The lady followed him suspiciously, watching him closely as he circled round the instrument.

"Well?" She demanded when he had stopped to stare at it from the other side. "Can you do it or not?"

Kimihiro's eyes flitted to her angry countenance before returning to the harp once more. "It what way exactly has it been 'troublesome'?" He had a good idea of what it was with the silver mists that were slowly fluctuating at its base but he preferred to have the lady's own perspective on the matter.

The lady gave him a stare that suggested that she was offended by being asked the question. But when Kimihiro met her stare evenly, refusing to withdraw the question, her frosty gaze turned to the harp. "It's cursed. Every time I have guests it starts to play. No matter where I put it, the sound reaches the dinning room. It's gotten to the stage where I can't entertain without interruptions."

Kimihiro eyed the curling mists. They continued their slow circulation, shifting slowly yet ultimately not harmful. The lady's words had only confirmed his suspicions. There was no harm coming from the harp directed towards its owner. Rather only a warning.

Something tugged at his awareness at the same time a slight movement caught his eye. Kimihiro looked up to see Doumeki had ignored his firm suggestion and followed him. The prince now stood within the mouth of the corridor watching the proceedings with a bland expression.

Kimihiro shifted so that Lady Antwerp's attention was firmly fixed on him, her back to the west wing. "There is no curse to be removed." He tried to keep his eyes on the lady rather than the all-too visible prince who stood not more than ten meters behind her.

Her eyes narrowed. "Then how would you explain such a _taint_?" The pale blue eyes descended to the harp once more.

Kimihiro took the opportunity to glare at Doumeki over her shoulder. _Get out of sight before she sees you. The last thing we need is for you to be spotted here of all places!_

Doumeki caught the gaze and apparently the message it contained. He raised an eyebrow and Kimihiro could almost hear his unspoken words. _What does it matter if I'm seen or not?_

Kimihiro's fingers twitched. But the prince was several meters away and Kimihiro wasn't one for physical violence, no matter how tempting the thought was.

"Well?" Lady Antwerp's gaze was set on him once again. "Can you explain what has been happening if it not a curse?" Her pale eyes bored into him, her pale lips pulled thin by a distasteful quirk.

Despite the overwhelming urge to quickly finish the matter without letting the lady's eyes fall on his troublesome guest, Kimihiro found his attention drawn back the harp. The mist still circled its base. "One of your ancestors has been linked to the harp." And to illustrate, he set one bare hand on the harp's neck.

The mist suddenly uncoiled and enshrouded the strings. Almost immediately they began to quiver, notes plucked out in a tune that had been popular centuries before.

A sudden blow to his arm had Kimihiro's hand falling away from the smooth wood. "Stop it!" Lady Antwerp's face twisted as the music continued, even as Kimihiro took a step back. "Turn it off!" She knelt on the floor, heedless of her skirts and frantically began laying her hands on the trembling harp strings trying to quiet them.

Kimihiro seized the chance and turned his eyes back to Doumeki. His gold eyes were narrowed and from the look of it, he was just about to walk into the foyer.

Kimihiro glared at him. _Don't you dare_.

Doumeki looked around and folded his arms. _Well, where do you want me?_

_I don't care - just get out of sight before she turns round!_ He wasn't quite certain how but his glare seemed to get the message across. Doumeki frowned and looked around the corridor. His gaze settled on the door handle of the room closest to the foyer and his hand reached out to grasp it.

_NO!_ Kimihiro nearly swallowed his tongue.

But the prince's hand settled on the handle with no ill-effect. Unaware of Kimihiro's scare, he opened the door and slid inside, closing it softly behind him.

Kimihiro let out a shaky sigh of relief. The prince's innate warding powers must have risen to the fore. Anyone else would have been blasted by the wards laid on that door.

Unless the protections had been lowered.

His eyes slid to Hikideshi. The butler met his gaze impassively but Kimihiro knew well enough to see that a number of emotions were swimming under the calm surface. He had better finish up here before Doumeki touched something he shouldn't.

xXx

Doumeki closed the door softly behind him. He could still hear Kimihiro's voice softly through the wood and the more strident tone of Lady Antwerp. He paused, head bent towards the door, but he still couldn't make out the words.

He straightened. Despite the slightly strained look he was wearing, Kimihiro had the situation in hand. And no matter how much he may have wanted to intervene, Kimihiro was right. His presence would likely made the situation worse rather than helped.

It didn't mean he was happy about it, though.

Doumeki turned his attention to the room he had entered. It was small and sparse but it was clearly a bedroom. A bed was set along the far wall, the bedclothes drawn tight over the mattress and a small cedar chest squatting at its foot. There was a lone dresser was set next to the head of the bed, its polished wooden surface waxed and polished, gleaming in the light. A glance to the side caught glimpse of the wardrobe that was set further along the wall beside the door. It was made in the same style as the dresser, simple elegant lines in dark wood. The room was bare of any other furniture.

Despite the bare, almost sparse nature of the room, however, there were also several personal touches. A thick rug lay on the tiled floor, covering the pale surface with a subdued pattern of colours. An old oil painting hung on the wall opposite the foot of the bed. And at the end of the bed itself, on the small trunk, there was book, a pale slip of paper peeking out between its pages to suggest that it was in the midst of being read.

What caught Doumeki's eye, however, was the pair of crossed swords that adorned the bare wall above the bed. They were set low on the wall, within arm's reach for someone lying in the bed. The ornate hilts, set with sections of stylized blossoms and dragons in lacquer, suggested that the blades were old yet the worn scabbards they resting in showed that they had seen years of use. They weren't simply a collector's prized relics.

Doumeki's thoughts turned back to Hikideshi's unobtrusive presence. He was so good at keeping to the background that it took the prince a moment to recall his exact appearance. The butler was of average height, which put him slightly shorter than his master. He appeared to be of average build too, if one didn't notice the controlled grace of his movements and the way his uniform hid the broad strength of his shoulders. A hidden strength that was enough to wield the two swords.

Doumeki moved closer to the bed and looked closer at the swords. The hilts were worn with long use but he was certain that when they were drawn, the blades would be in immaculate condition. A flash of silver caught his gaze and Doumeki shifted so that he could see the iron hilt guards. They were both the same. Elaborate wards cast in iron and chased with silver leaf, black and silver protections wound round the blades.

He cast a look around the room once more. Everything was utilitarian; all of the furniture was there to serve a purpose. Even the location of the room ensured that the butler would be the first to face whoever entered the mansion. And with the swords hanging over the bed, Doumeki had no doubt if there were any unwelcome intruders, the two swords would be used to greet them.

There was only one object that could be regarded as decoration solely for decoration's sake.

Doumeki's attention returned to the painting. It was a landscape. A small hillside, edged either side by trees. There was nothing more. The focal point seemed to be the hillside itself. Doumeki scrutinized the painting, trying to figure out why this landscape had been given pride of place on the wall of a room that was dedicated to function. A sense of familiarity nagged at his mind but why he felt it, eluded him.

There was a soft click.

Doumeki turned to see Kimihiro entering the room, Hikideshi still standing in the hall behind him. The lord stopped several steps into the room. His dark eyes took in the prince's close proximity to the painting but he said nothing.

"Lady Antwerp left?" He hadn't heard the woman depart but she must have if Kimihiro had come to retrieve him.

Kimihiro nodded. His gaze fell on the swords and then moved back to Doumeki. "You didn't finish eating, did you?"

Of all things for Kimihiro to say, that was the one he had least expected. Doumeki stared at the lord. Kimihiro had a strange expression on his face. His eyes were lowered, fixed on Doumeki's chest. It was as if he was trying to avoid looking at his surroundings. As if he felt his presence in the room was an unwelcome intrusion.

"No." He turned more fully away from the painting.

Kimihiro seemed relieved at the reply. "Then we should adjourn to the dinning room." He turned to leave the room without waiting for a reply.

After a moment, Doumeki followed. As he left the room he cast one last look back, glancing once more at the familiar scene in the painting. And then it was cut off as Hikideshi shut the door.

xXx

Ah, my dear Hikideshi. You're always up to something :D

xXx


	29. Present Reality IV

Entwining Fates:

Present Reality

IV

Kimihiro was feeling uncommonly rattled as he walked down the corridor to the dinning room.

It hadn't ended well with Lady Antwerp. The pale beauty hadn't believed him when he explained the situation. Apparently it was easier to believe that the harp was cursed rather than inhabited by the spirit of a deceased ancestor who was trying her best to warn her descendant about the dangers of the company she kept.

Or perhaps Lady Antwerp simply didn't want to hear it.

Kimihiro had heard vaguely about the sort of guests that Lady Antwerp was entertaining. There were some people in the capital that were able to move unchecked now that the wardens of the city had lost their positions of power. And with the embracing of modern thoughts, many of the traditions which had handed down protection and knowledge through the generations were ignored. As a result people like Lady Fukao were left to prowl through the capital unchecked.

The consultation had ended when the lady had retrieved her harp and left the mansion. Kimihiro was left with the sinking feeling that she would do something drastic in order to settle the situation to her satisfaction. And he doubted it would be to the good of the spirit of the ancestor who lived in the harp.

It made him feel guilty that he had done nothing. But Yuuko's teachings held him back even though his first impulse was to intervene. Unless his help was asked for, he could not do that. Aid was given only to those who asked. To do otherwise could cause more harm than the original circumstances would have done.

He had seen the results of that too often to doubt its truth.

After the lady had left, trailing the train of her modern gown behind her, Kimihiro turned his attention to the Keeper who had stumbled into Hikideshi's room.

Hikideshi hadn't shown any sign of anger at the intrusion but Kimihiro was uneasy with the situation. When he had been younger, his parents had impressed upon him that the room was Hikideshi's alone. It was not for others to enter unless they were invited. He had taken their words to heart. Kimihiro had only entered the room after his parents had died. When the butler had taken the child he had been left to raise into his room to sleep under his watchful eyes in order to keep the nightmares away.

It had been the room in which Kimihiro had felt safest.

But as he grew older, Kimihiro had come to realize that the room was the only place that Hikideshi had to himself. It was the lone retreat of a servant whose life was dedicated to his master. And as such Kimihiro had respected Hikideshi's need for privacy and not ventured into the room since.

For Doumeki to enter, someone who had no close connection to Hikideshi, seemed a trespass. When he had seen Doumeki standing in the simply furnished room, his first thought was to get the prince out as soon as possible. Especially when the prince was looking so intently at the painting set on the wall.

Food had been the lure that his mind had come up with. Even as the words had left his mouth though, he had been aware of how out of character they were. Not only was he encouraging the prince to eat, he was encouraging him to eat food he had pilfered. Stupid but at least it had worked.

Sort of. He could feel Doumeki's eyes on his back as they walked to the dinning room.

As they reached the end of the corridor, Hikideshi stepped forward to open the ornately warded door. Kimihiro slid an uncertain glance at the butler but entered, followed by Doumeki.

The dishes were as he had left them, lids placed on the serving platters. The empty plate in front of the seat where Doumeki had been sitting, however, suggested that the prince had taken the time to polish off the food on it before following. But Kimihiro wasn't surprised to find that what had been too much for him was barely a starter for Doumeki. Even now the gold eyes were fixed on the serving dishes.

Somehow Kimihiro couldn't help the slight twitching of his lips at the thought. He bent his head as he took his seat.

"I will bring another plate." Hikideshi was at his side, taking in the placement of dishes and plate. Before Kimihiro could think to protest, the butler was bowing and heading out of the room. It seemed that he wasn't going to take no for an answer. So much for getting out of breakfast.

One of Doumeki's long arms reached out and lifted the lid of one of the silver serving dishes. A plume of steam immediately rose upwards, forming a billowing curl that thinned as it rose further from the table. The prince waited until it had dispersed then peered interestedly at the contents before reaching for the serving spoon.

He looked so hungry Kimihiro surmised that he hadn't had breakfast yet. His brow wrinkled slightly. It wasn't usual for Doumeki to come over during the day let alone first thing in the morning. There must be a good reason.

The door opened again and Hikideshi entered once more. He ignored Kimihiro's resigned stare at the plate he held and smoothly placed it on the tablecloth in front of him. A clean set of cutlery was also set down precisely beside the plate and then Hikideshi was pouring another cup of tea.

Kimihiro accepted the cup as Hikideshi handed it to him. Kimihiro lifted it to his lips, watching as the butler bowed and made his way out of the room. The lord stared at his retreating back thoughtfully. He didn't seem angry. Or perturbed in anyway. It was as if nothing had happened.

A slight chink of metal on porcelain had Kimihiro's attention turning back to his plate. A spoonful of eggs had been set on the pristine surface and even as he watched another was added.

"What are you doing?" The words fell from his lips almost unnoticed, he was so shocked.

Doumeki ignored the question, obviously thinking that was rather self-explanatory. "Do you want some more?" The serving spoon dipped into the serving dish once more in preparation to scooping up some more eggs.

Kimihiro's hands fanned over his plate to prevent any more unsolicited additions. He found himself speechless at the sight of a prince serving a lord. No. At _Doumeki_ serving _him_. The man had absolutely no sense of social propriety.

Doumeki shrugged and set the spoon back into to the dish before lifting the lid off another platter. He began to lift pieces of toast and started transferring them to his plate.

With a wary eye on the other man, Kimihiro began to help himself to a few slices of fresh fruit which had been laid out. If he didn't look like he was getting something, he was half-afraid that Doumeki would start piling more food onto his plate.

"What brings you to see me?" He impaled a slice and lifted it from his plate.

Gold eyes slid towards him for a minute before returning to the task at hand. "I made enquiries about guardian statues. A replacement won't be ready until spring."

Kimihiro's fork lowered.

Doumeki continued as if he hadn't seen the frozen expression on the lord's face. "Until then, you should stay in the mansion. When you have to go out, I'll accompany you."

His thoughts were an unconnected jumble obscured by a mass of conflicting emotions. The offer was unexpected. It was generous. It was dangerous. Well intentioned and high-handed. It was exactly what Doumeki would do. Yet he hadn't foreseen it. He hadn't expected it at all.

"What about your duties?" The fork had been placed back on the plate and his hands rested on the edge of the table to hide the slight trembling that had overtaken them.

Doumeki set his own fork down. "It is my duty to protect this city." The gold eyes set on him steadily. "And that includes you."

That couldn't have been meant the way it was said.

Kimihiro suddenly remembered another set of gold eyes. Laughing eyes. Fierce and kind all at once. His hands clenched, knuckles white blades beneath the pale skin. "It wouldn't be wise for us to be seen together." It came out softer than he intended. His lips tightened as he heard the subdued tone of his voice.

Doumeki's stare didn't waver. "You've been out of society's eye for seven years. Not many would recognize you." A pause. "And those who would won't admit it."

It was obvious that the prince didn't give a damn. He didn't know what had happened, what could all-too easily repeat itself. Kimihiro's nails dug into his palms. But even if he did, it was likely that he would take the same course. He was stubborn. Too stubborn.

Doumeki seemed to sense his reluctance. "You're not going anywhere unless I'm with you." His voice was unyielding.

Kimihiro's eyes narrowed in anger, though he didn't quite feel up to it. "Is that an order?"

"Would you prefer one?" There was an unreadable expression in the prince's pale gold eyes.

Kimihiro lowered his gaze, feeling somehow as if he was in the wrong.

He thought over the situation. If Doumeki was with him then at least he could keep an eye on him. If he continued to go off on his own to investigate things, the prince would get himself killed, innate warding or no. And if that happened the Southern Ward would fall soon after.

Keeping Doumeki safe was becoming nearly as important a duty as countering the outbreaks that were beginning to flare up in the capital. Maybe even more so.

He shied away from that thought.

Besides he had to admit that having Doumeki with him would give him an advantage. With the Keeper at his side it was possible that he would be able to deal with some of the problems which had formerly been beyond his reach. Exposure to the some of the less critical situations would have an added bonus of familiarizing the Keeper with some of the dangers he would face. It would likely increase his chances of survival. If things got too dangerous, Kimihiro would simply find a way to go round him.

"Only for as long as it takes." Until Doumeki could fend for himself. And Kimihiro could judge what was needed to put a stop to the changing current.

He knew that spring would bring no relief. Even with another stone guardian, the wards could never be fully restored. They were damaged beyond repair. They could be bolstered but they would never be the same. It was the beginning of the end of their long guardianship. Now all he could do was buy time.

Hopefully it would be long enough.

Doumeki picked up his fork, unaware of the lord's dark thoughts. He seemed satisfied with Kimihiro's acceptance.

Kimihiro picked up his own discarded fork and slid a slice of nectarine into his mouth. The sweet flavour spilling across his tongue awoke his hunger and he found himself helping himself to more. Even the pile of eggs that Doumeki had set on his plate uninvited started to look appealing.

He hadn't been eating well over the last few days. There was something about being stared at through every window by hungry eyes that decreased his appetite. He'd tried to ignore it but the more he tried, the more his eyes darted to the shadowy forms that lurked out on the grounds.

Hikideshi had noticed, just as he noticed everything. And that was how he had found himself in the dinning room this morning with a spread of food that he couldn't possibly eat by himself. It was almost enough to suspect the coincidence of the prince's timing.

He frowned down at the remaining egg on his plate. Doumeki.

His eyes flickered to the wide panes that let the flood of light into the room. There were no spirits at the windows anymore. Doumeki's presence in the room was enough to cause them to fall back. He hadn't seen any of them since the Keeper had stepped into the dinning room.

As Kimihiro gathered up a forkful of egg and lifted it to his mouth a thought stirred in his mind. He didn't like it but he had no choice but to consider it. After all, Doumeki had already offered his aid.

With the wards in the state they were, the cracks in the boundary line could be gradually forced wider, allowing more spirits to gain access to the estate. At the moment there were only a few but that would change if he didn't do anything about it. Eventually the major ward that powered the estate's protections would be under threat.

He couldn't allow the mansion to fall. Lives depended on it.

It wasn't possible to fix the primary boundary but there was a chance to erect the secondary boundary ward which had been created when the Watanuki line was first established. It wouldn't remove the spirits that were already within the estate but it would slow the incursion of those which would yet find their way though the crack. It would gain him more time.

It was important enough that he was willing to set aside his pride and ask Doumeki for a favour.

xXx


	30. Present Reality V

Entwining Fates:

Present Reality

V

Doumeki watched with interest as Hikideshi came into the foyer with carrying two bags. The butler's dark gaze flickered across to meet his stare briefly before coming back to his lord.

Kimihiro stood within the ward set into the foyer floor. Doumeki hadn't failed to notice the way he kept the black lines looping across the floor between him and the front door. Or the occasional nervous glances the lord sent toward the warded portal. It had gotten to the stage that Doumeki had found himself unconsciously standing between the lord and the entrance that bothered him.

Hikideshi stopped in front of them both, bags still in hand. They were leather, darkened with age and patterned by a faded glitter of ward lines in silver thread. But they had obviously retained their strength - by the way the butler held them, it was clear that they contained something heavy.

"My lord." He held one out and Kimihiro took it. The way the lord's arm suddenly straightened, suggested that the contents were heavier than he had first thought. But he didn't protest, simply tightened his hold. When Hikideshi offered the second bag, however, Doumeki quickly reached out to take it before Kimihiro could. The butler handed it over with barely a blink, pretending not to see the vexed look on his lord's face.

"They are all there." Hikideshi was ignoring his lord's dissatisfaction with the prince and kept to the issue at hand. "I have arranged for Itsuki and Kichirou to bring up the primary carriage." A slight pause. "It is old but more suited to this task than His Highness' vehicle."

Kimihiro seemed to get some message from the butler's words. The annoyance left his face and he nodded sombrely. The butler cast him one more look then crossed the foyer to open the door.

For a moment Kimihiro didn't move, hand clenching nervously on the handle of the bag he held. But after a sideways glance at Doumeki, he started determinedly for the door. Doumeki stared after him thoughtfully for a moment before following.

There was no hesitation as the warded door swung open. The lord shifted his grip on the bag but didn't falter as he stepped through the doorway and out onto the crescent-warded portico. Hikideshi cast a piercing look at the prince as he passed through the doorway and then quietly shut the door behind them.

Kimihiro's hesitation returned as he reached the top of the steps but after a moment he started down the warded steps. Flashes of red, gold and silver winked from his clothing as he stepped out onto the gravel drive and headed towards the ancient carriage, ignoring the gazes of the prince's driver and footman.

Doumeki trailed close behind, taking in the carriage that stood on the drive. The gold and silver scrollwork shone even in the dull morning light. But despite its elegant presence, it was clear that the carriage was not going to be used simply as a conveyance today. The driver and footman wore sombre plain clothing rather than their livery and the usual bays had been replaced. A pair of dappled grey cobs stood in the ward-encrusted traces, ears flicking around alertly. As Kimihiro walked across the drive towards them, they turned their heads with a slight jingle of harness, dark eyes watching his approach.

"Itsuki." Kimihiro ignored the open door held by the footman and walked to the front of the carriage to look up at the driver sitting on his perch. "You'll need to keep to the trail without any divergences. Stop at the clearings but don't change the direction of the carriage."

Itsuki was a middle-aged man. Tanned by years in the sun, his dark eyes bracketed by sun-winkles, he gave off a feeling of solid dependability. He nodded at his lord finished speaking. "Just like last time."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed. By the aborted movement he caught in the corner of his eye, it was clear that the footman thought he shouldn't be privy to such information.

Kimihiro smiled wanly. He seemed oblivious to the byplay. "Yes. Thank you."

The driver touched a hand to the brim of his cap in respectful salute. "My lord." He flicked a glance back at the carriage then turned forward again, picking up the reins.

Kimihiro walked back to the open carriage door. Doumeki, who had been standing slightly to one side, shifted his hold on the bag hanging from his grip. He watched as the footman offered to take the bag his lord carried. An offer that was gently refused. The bag was slid into the carriage and then Kimihiro climbed in after it.

Doumeki followed suit. But he couldn't help but notice that the look the young man gave him as he held open the door was less friendly that the one which had been turned on the footman's lord. It seemed that that he was still unwelcome.

He settled into the seat opposite Kimihiro, the bags on the floor between their feet. The door shut firmly and the carriage rocked slightly as the footman jumped up to the footboard behind the cabin. Almost immediately the vehicle started moving, an abrupt jolt that smoothed out into a steady pull as the cobs began to tow the carriage along the gravel drive.

Doumeki watched as Kimihiro sat tensely on the opposite bench seat. The lord avoided looking out the window but he wasn't looking at Doumeki either. As a result his gaze was fixed on some point of the upholstery to one side. Still and painted with a piebald of light and shadow, he looked like he was deep in thought. The pale ridges of his knuckles as his hands folded tensely over each other, however, belied the image.

Doumeki had been surprised by the relative ease that the reclusive lord had agreed to his demand. For a moment he had thought that Kimihiro was going to erupt into one of his affronted displays of anger. But except for a slight protest, he had given in. Doumeki had to wonder if Kimihiro had some other way to get around his word. He frowned as he took in the lord's tense frame. Or perhaps he truly had no choice.

Kimihiro suddenly looked up caught his speculative glance. "It shouldn't take long. We should be back by mid afternoon."

Doumeki didn't have any pressing engagements that would have required his attention. But even if he had, he wouldn't have left after Kimihiro had asked for his help. His own feelings aside, Doumeki had come to the conclusion that the entire city rested on the pale lord's continued survival. With Haruka gone, he seemed to be the only one who had the knowledge to counter the strange incidents that were beginning to pop up all over the city.

Doumeki found that he had been called on in his role as Keeper more in the last few months that he had during the rest of his entire tenure. Even Alastaire had commented that many of the wardens with the knowledge of their previous occupations had been called on more often as well. It seemed that just as the move to modernism was growing momentum, so too were the supernatural incidents that put lie to its lure.

But it was more than a reaction to the recent suppression. There was something else, a thread of malevolent intent running beneath it all. Something unseen below the water's surface. As time passed, Doumeki had become more convinced that the entire thing was linked to Haruka's death and Lord Kimihiro's stubborn one-man battle.

And Doumeki had every intention of finding answers.

xXx

"What are we looking for?" Doumeki followed the flash of gold, red and silver that was threading through the bushes in front of him. A branch at eye level approached and he lifted his free hand to push it out of the way as he kept close to Kimihiro. While the lord wasn't moving quickly, the surrounding greenery made it hard to keep him in sight.

The carriage had soon left the gravel drive, jolting as it rolled through a gap in the hedges that lined the drive. When Doumeki had looked out the window, there was no road that he could see. They had simply left the drive, rolling across the grass that lay beyond and heading to the thick greenery which seemed to make up most of the estate. He was beginning to see why the more sturdy cobs were in the traces.

By the time the carriage had finally rolled to a stop, they had reached an area of the estate that was obscured from any landmarks that he was familiar with. It was simply trees and a faint line of dirt that he surmised was the trail that Kimihiro had spoken of.

The lord certainly seemed familiar with the area when he had left the carriage. He'd only taken a moment to see that Doumeki had taken one of the bags before him and then he was walking out of the clearing with slow but confident steps. Only the quick darting of his eyes betrayed any nervousness that belied his show of confidence. Doumeki followed as closely as he could, hoping that his presence would keep away the unseen dangers Kimihiro feared. They had walked for several minutes, leaving the clearing for a world comprising of trees and long grass. There was no path that Doumeki could see but Kimihiro led him unerringly between trees, avoiding brambles and half-hidden logs. It soon became clear that Kimihiro knew exactly where he was going.

Kimihiro had stopped and was waiting for Doumeki once he breached the wall of greenery. They had come under the outspread branches of a huge tree. The thick canopy overhead cut the light so that the earth below was uncovered except for grass and a low growth of young plants. Kimihiro gestured towards the thick trunk that was the focal point of the natural clearing. "This is what we're looking for."

The lord started walking forward again, carefully moving around the small shoots and bushes that fought for the dappled light that filtered down through the leaves above. He kept walking until he was standing beside the enormous trunk and rested a hand on the rough surface. "When the site for the mansion was decided on, an initial boundary ward was established. At each point a tree was planted. It was thought that as they grew, they would form the basis of a seventeen-point ward that enveloped the mansion."

Doumeki walked over to his side and stared up at the tree which towered above them. That would suggest that it was several hundred years old. "Wouldn't that mean that the ward is already complete?"

Kimihiro shook his head, hand sliding away from the trunk. "It was once. But it was broken." His eyes took on a distant cast. "But it is still possible to resurrect it when there is need." His focus returned to Doumeki. "As a temporary measure."

"Using these." Doumeki lifted the bag he held in illustration.

Kimihiro nodded. "Just as the major ward can be bolstered, so can the original boundary ward." The lord's voice was slightly distracted as his gaze swept the ground around the trunk. "One simply has to re-enforce the existing points and reconnect them." He suddenly spotted what he was looking for and moved around the trunk a few steps before kneeling on the ground. He brushed back some of the undergrowth. "I'll need a stake." A pale hand reached up towards Doumeki.

Correctly inferring that there was one in the heavy bag he carried, Doumeki set the bag on the ground and started to unbuckle the leather straps that held it shut. They gave easily under his fingers, emitting a strong scent of leather as he unthreaded them from the metal that held them. When they were unfastened, he pulled back the flap and reached inside.

Cool metal met his fingers, round and unyielding. Several long cylinders of metal. He grasped one and pulled it carefully from the bag before handing it over.

Insets of gold set in the silver stake flashed as the rod was set in Kimihiro's hand. For a moment the lord examined the two-foot length he held in his hand. But then he spun it round, its pointed end facing towards the ground, and thrust it into the soil which he had cleared. It bit deep into the earth and stood upright, glinting in the limited light. As Kimihiro stood it only came to his knees. It looked insignificant against the thick trunk it stood before but Kimihiro seemed satisfied.

"Is that all?" Unasked, Doumeki was already refastening the bag.

Kimihiro gave him a faint smile. "Fifteen to go."

xXx

The process soon became familiar. The carriage would stop in another clearing and they would find the correct tree to plant another silver stake at its base. Kimihiro had an unerring sense of direction, immediately striking out for each point of the boundary ward, despite the fact that most of the clearings were surrounded by untended greenery.

Doumeki, following quietly behind, soon started to realize that it wasn't entirely as it seemed. He noticed that often Kimihiro would stop and close his eyes, simply standing still for several moments. Soon after he would be off again, walking confidently and leading them straight to the next ancient tree. It soon became clear that Kimihiro was somehow able to sense each of the ward's points.

It reminded Doumeki of something in his youth. A faded memory he hadn't recalled in years. One he had buried deep after his grandfather's death and soon forgotten. But now as he watched Kimihiro it flooded back, crisp and clear as if it had been yesterday.

He had been sitting on the stone bench under the weeping cherry that overlooked the pond. The blossoms had all fallen and the hanging branches were now covered by a multitude of small green leaves that were dizzying to contemplate. His grandfather had been telling him about the founding of the Southern Ward when he had suddenly broken off mid-sentence. Doumeki had glanced up to see that the older man's gaze had been turned to the south. The Keeper had then risen and picked up his grandson, carrying him back to the main house as he continued the story. He had given the excuse that the weather was about to turn. But it hadn't rained that night.

Doumeki frowned suddenly. To the south. His gaze inexorably turned to Kimihiro.

A frown creased the lord's brow as he stood with his eyes closed. Even as Doumeki watched the dark blue eyes flickered open. There was an uncertain look in their depths but the lord turned and started to head towards the thicker growth of trees to the southwest.

Doumeki was suddenly seized by the same feeling of foreboding that had sent him out to the Watanuki estate that morning. He reached out and grabbed Kimihiro's arm, pulling him to a stop.

Kimihiro was pulled off balance by the abrupt move. He ended up bumping shoulder to shoulder briefly before bouncing off Doumeki and coming to a stop at the end of the prince's grip. Wide blue eyes turned towards him as Kimihiro regained his balance. Normally Doumeki would have expected a glare or sharp comment but the lord was too shocked to be angry.

"Something's not right." The words seemed inadequate for the warning that was silently ringing through him. Even as he said it, Doumeki's eyes were scanning their surroundings, looking for what threat had caused him to act so suddenly.

For a moment nothing happened. There was only Kimihiro's arm under his hand and the sigh of the wind through the branches overhead as they swayed against the grey blanket of the sky. But then there was an abrupt surge of movement among the trees before them.

A flock of crows suddenly burst forth from the tree line causing both men to flinch. For several moments there was only a wave of glossy black as the birds clawed into the air. There was a battering thunder as hundreds of wings filled the sky, an almost physical clamour that grew as more birds emerged from the trees. Pale eyes glittered and curled feet tucked up close to feathered bodies as they gathered height. They passed directly over the two men, their calls gathering as more and more joined the chorus.

Doumeki turned to watch them go, not willing to let them out of sight. His eyes remained on the black murder as it left them behind, wheeling to the west. It wasn't until they were distant specks on the overcast sky that he felt a slight movement under his fingers.

"You're hurting my arm." Kimihiro's face was pale, eye wide in his slightly pinched face. The absence of his customary anger spoke volumes about how unsettled he was.

Doumeki left go as if he had been burned. He hadn't realized that he had tightened his grip that much. For Kimihiro to complain it must have been quite painful.

The lord was gingerly massaging his arm but seemed more anxious about the point they were there to locate. He eyed the tree line warily for a long moment then slowly released his injured arm and reached into a pocket. Doumeki knew what he was after before the silver watch was withdrawn in his palm, trailing the chain like a spider web dotted with rain drops.

"Ryuu." A gold light flashed from the silver watch and when it cleared, the dragon had appeared. The long gold tail wrapped around the arm that held the pocket watch and the dragon's coils were wrapped several times around the lord's shoulders, gold claws digging into his coat. The construct was larger than Doumeki had ever seen it, the brick-sized head raised in a threatening posture and its dark eyes flashing in compressed fury. Even as he watched its head darted forward towards the tree line and it hissed, a sizzling sound like water on a heated pan, baring a maw of needle-thin teeth.

Kimihiro appeared somewhat startled by its size and behaviour. His dark eyes widened before the right suddenly closed in a wince, his empty hand already beginning to rise to the troublesome orb. But the move was abruptly aborted, frozen in mid-gesture. The lord's attention suddenly turned back to the wooded area that the construct took such exception to. His lips suddenly drew tight into thin bloodless lines.

Doumeki followed his gaze, remembering what had happened last time a flock of crows had appeared. The uneasy feeling that had gripped him earlier was still present. "There's something there." And whatever it was, it was a threat.

The dark blue eyes narrowed, suddenly regaining some of the spirit which had been lacking in recent days. "It doesn't matter. I need to complete the ward." And so saying he started walking.

Doumeki didn't even hesitate, matching Kimihiro stride for stride.

xXx


	31. Present Reality VI

Entwining Fates:

Present Reality

VI

The curved edges of the metal in his grasp cut into his fingers and palm. It was all that he could do to keep his breathing even and his steps steady. But it was all a lie. His heart was beating so fast that he was afraid that Doumeki would notice. It seemed a miracle that he hadn't.

Despite his determination, he was frightened. That what he had suspected had come _here_. Things had gone further than he thought. His estate was a lot closer than Daiworth, only twenty miles out from the capital. To have come this far meant that his were not the only protections to have weakened. They were steadily moving closer to the city. And they were just the vanguard, a remnant which had been left behind after the last attack. The real terror hadn't even arrived yet.

Haruka hadn't been able to stop them. Not entirely. And it was left to him.

They were getting closer to the tree. Doumeki was right behind him and as a result Kimihiro's usual senses were dimmed. But even so he could feel what lurked in wait. It stole into his awareness like a cold blade, searing and sapping his strength. It was a sensation he had felt only once before.

Just thinking about it made him feel like he was breathing through a block of ice. His grip tightened on the watch as his breath shortened and he consciously tried to bring his fear under control. It was different now, after all. He had Doumeki and Ryuu.

He pushed through the last screen of greenery that separated them from their goal.

Ryuu's hiss echoed in his ears as he drew to an abrupt halt.

Dead crows lay on the ground. There could have only been six or seven but the torn off wings and scattered feathers made it seem like that there were a lot more. The black pieces spread over the long grass and even reached into the surrounding trees. Large primaries hung limply from branches they had snagged on and small chest feathers flowed across the grass in a soft wave around broken limbs. Barely a foot in front of him lay a head. Its beak had been partly imbedded in the soil, tilting its head on an angle so that a pale blue eye gazed lifelessly into his own.

Kimihiro hastily turned his eyes aside.

But it didn't help. Wet black feathers met his eyes wherever they turned, tattered, broken and scattered in an explosion of rage. And even if he had closed them, he would still see the jagged black streamers that fluttered over the ground like so many discarded rags.

Where the rabbit's soul had been consumed, something much worse had happened here.

The crows had been ripped apart. Not just physically but utterly, in all respects. Kimihiro could all too-vividly picture the slaughter. The ripping of birds' souls from their bodies just before they died. The slow, almost loving, shredding of their essence slice by slice until there was nothing left. Nothing but tortured slivers that remained sundered in a limbo between life and death.

He had seen such things before. On that night- His mind shuddered back from the memories, leaving him in a cold sweat.

It hadn't been a meal. It was simply wanton destruction for the pleasure that arose from pulling something apart and reducing it to nothing. And he knew exactly what had done it.

It squatted in the shadow of the tree. The long grass concealed most of its body but Kimihiro knew exactly what it was as soon as its lantern yellow eyes met his own. They had met before, though before it had been horses rather than crows.

The creature seemed pleased by the recognition it saw in his eyes. The thin discoloured lips drew tight with amusement. The narrow head tilted forward, the muscles of its over-developed jaw flexing as a string of black liquid slid from the corner of its mouth. It stretched as it fell, an oily strand that broke as it neared the ground, burning through the strands of grass it landed on. As a thick oily smoke rose from the dying grass, its eyes kept locked with Kimihiro's, the black tatters of the sundered crows dancing lifeless in the space that separated them.

Kimihiro was all too aware of Doumeki behind him. He had stopped as Kimihiro had, a silent, solid presence. Even as he kept up the staring competition with the creature that sat perilously close to the ancient tree, Kimihiro was aware of the danger his presence held. He shouldn't have asked Doumeki to come with him today.

Doumeki seemed to know what he was thinking. He shifted, moving up to Kimihiro's side. Irrevocably aligning himself with the lord.

The yellow eyes suddenly shifted to Doumeki, thin grey tongue sliding forth from the blood-stained skin of the wide mouth and curling back to caress the slivers of its teeth. It considered the Keeper for a moment and then its mouth widened to display more of the dirty jagged knives as cold calculation slid into its yellow eyes.

Ryuu reared up with long drawn-out hiss. The dragon was trembling with rage, claws clutching so tight that they pierced fabric to reach flesh. Kimihiro knew that there was nothing it would have liked to do more than shoot across the clearing and rip the creature that squatted in the shadow to shreds.

But to leave Kimihiro's shoulders was to leave its master unprotected. This creature and its ilk always delighted in what they considered games. Creating an illusion for escape then crushing it mercilessly. Playing with their food.

As Kimihiro knew all too well. He had once been at the mercy of this creature's master and wasn't willing to repeat the experience.

It noticed the change in his stance and the yellow globes suddenly became narrow slits. In a blink of an eye it was on its feet, misshaped body crouched in a sinuous curve that shouldn't have been possible. Dark liquid trailed down from where it wept from cracked and broken flesh, flowing across the grotesque contours of muscle and bone. The curving blades on the ends of the stick-like fingers that hung from deformed sinewy arms, scrapped over each other in a sound that sent a shiver running down Kimihiro's spine.

A cunning look came over its narrow face as it judged the distance between them. And in that split second Kimihiro suddenly knew that it had once been human. Twisted and misshapen over the centuries as its jealousy and lust for power had leeched from it what humanity remained. It was not some powerful elemental as he had always believed it to be.

It was one of Them.

A scout most likely. It was too early yet for Them to have come this far. He had to believe that it had managed to get through the chink in the ward by chance. If it was otherwise, then the damage to the wards was greater than he had feared. And it had to be more cunning than it had once been.

Either way, his path was clear. He couldn't complete the ward while it remained. And he couldn't let it go free to report to its masters. Nor was he willing to let _this_ wander freely around his estate.

He gave a silent command to Ryuu just as Doumeki moved.

xXx

The feeling of dread only increased the closer they got to the ancient tree. Doumeki found his hands fisted at his sides, knowing that they were heading into danger but not quite certain what he could do about the situation. He only knew how to deal with minor entities of the supernatural world as part of his duties as Keeper. The only exception had been at the shrine a month ago. But from the way the golden dragon was wrapped around its master, Doumeki was certain that origami was not going to be enough.

The handle of the bag creaked under his grip and the answer suddenly flashed into Doumeki's mind. The stakes. They were enough to support a boundary ward. And to judge from the sigils and flowing lines running over them in gold thread, they had a considerable warding power on their own. If it came down to it, he could use the stakes as an impromptu shield.

Other than that, all he could do was stay close to Kimihiro and keep his eyes open.

Kimihiro brushed aside a branch and ducked forward. Doumeki followed only to freeze when he realized that Kimihiro had stopped and golden dragon mantling around his shoulders was letting out a threatening hiss.

Dead crows lay scattered out before them. They had been torn to pieces, feathers and limbs thrown around with abandon. The flock of crows immediately came to mind. Had these birds been their comrades or was it something else?

He turned to Kimihiro. The lord had frozen, his face totally leeched of colour. His pupils had widened so much that his eyes were practically black holes in his face. The image was unnerving and it took Doumeki a moment to realize that he was staring fixedly at one point. As was the construct.

It was a patch of long grass only a few steps away from the wide trunk of the tree. He narrowed his eyes, but all he could see was bent grass and the shadows behind it. But even as he watched, several stalks of grass suddenly bent over, curling up and darkening as if caught in some invisible fire.

There _was_ something there.

Almost without thinking, he took a step closer, bringing himself to Kimihiro's side.

The gold dragon suddenly let out a furious hiss, body rising and claws digging deeply into the shoulders it coiled round. Ryuu's head darted forward and the dragon bared its teeth in threat.

Kimihiro seemed oblivious, however, eyes locked on whatever had roused the dragon's wrath. But his gaze had shifted somewhat. He now stared at a space a foot above the grass. It had to have moved. Even as Doumeki watched a blaze of fearful recognition look flashed through Kimihiro's dark eyes before they narrowed in implacable determination.

Seized by the feeling that Kimihiro was going to do something desperate, Doumeki pulled a stake from the bag. Grasping it firmly in his hand he threw it, point first, at the space Kimihiro was staring at.

It arced neatly through the air and bit smoothly into the earth.

But it hadn't been the only projectile. The gold dragon had launched itself across the clearing, following the path of the stake. It now clamped hind claws on the upright warding post and darted the thick coils of its upper body forward in a lightning-quick move. The dragon's elongated jaws snapped down savagely on something invisible at that base of the stake even as the claws of its front legs raked viciously through the same space. It was soon clear that the construct was engaged in some fearsome battle, with only the movements of the golden dragon indicating what was happening. The snapping jaws and vicious raking of the curved golden claws mapped its attack, with only the dexterous twisting of its sinuous body to reveal the moves of its unseen enemy.

Doumeki turned to Kimihiro to see how the lord was faring expending the power to keep the construct in the battle. But the lord seemed unaffected. His eyelids were half-lowered, hooding his dark eyes. They moved slightly to follow what Doumeki couldn't see but otherwise didn't reveal anything. But the hand holding the pocket watch was white-knuckled and his empty hand was fisted at his side. Even as he watched, Kimihiro suddenly flinched, eyes flashing open to reveal fear that was reminiscent of the terror that appeared when the lord had heard of the damage to boundary ward.

A resounding snap suddenly signalled the end of the fight. Doumeki turned back to see the construct quiescent, curling around the stake. It had shrunk to its original size, a small golden dragon the size of a lizard, a clear indication that there was no longer any danger.

Movement at his side turned his attention to Kimihiro. His face was bone pale and the look he gave the stake was one of relief rather than fear that it had been. But there was still a shadow of horror and disgust lurking in the quirk of his tightly pressed lips. Doumeki didn't fail to notice the faint tremors that ran though his arms as the lord's fisted hand flexed around the silver watch. Kimihiro's eyes caught his glance and his mouth tightened before he strode forward.

xXx

It was over in a matter of minutes.

Silver watch clenched tightly in one fist least the creature was not alone, Kimihiro watched the savage battle that orbited around the silver stake. Doumeki's throw had pieced the creature, eliciting a high choking squeal as it pinned the twisted being to the ground. Even as an arc of black fluid spewed up around the glittering pole, Ryuu was slashing into the writhing form at its base with teeth and claws.

The battle was uneven. With the misshapen creature weakened by the warding stake that pinned its spine to the earth, it was robbed of the lethal quickness that it had used to good advantage in the past. It could only snap its monstrous jaws and rake its claws awkwardly at the gold dragon that flashed around it in whipping coils, ripping flesh that sprayed black blood and tatters of black smoke. As the grass smoked and curled into twisted black lengths under the toxic fluid that sprayed out in increasingly wide-flung arcs it became clear which being would be the victor.

The inevitable result had dawned on the dark creature as well. It suddenly descended into a frenzy of thwarted rage. With a vicious blood-choked snarl it lashed out with its claws in a scissoring movement that had Ryuu recoiling to avoid the lethal curves. Enraged it twisted and lunged towards the lord that stood across the clearing, ignoring how the movement tore the stake through its body. The move unleashed a fountain of black that had Ryuu quickly twisting to avoid the lethal spray.

The furious yellow eyes locked on the Kimihiro and the thin clawed fingers dug deep into the soil as it sought to tear itself apart to reach the lord. Kimihiro found himself rooted to the spot as the bright gaze speared him. He could only watch the frantic scrabbling of the warped and twisted body that hosted the foul being as its eyes, those hateful eyes, bored into him. Even as Ryuu slashed at them in a renewed assault they kept staring, glittering through the dark sprays of flesh and blood before vanishing in a reversed rain of black oil.

A sudden loud snap as Ryuu lunged forward, ended it. Frozen in place, Kimihiro could only watch the creature's dying twitches, a final black spray gushing past the jagged colourless teeth to ravage the grass between them. And then it was still, a mangled wreck of flesh and exposed bone that stained the grass.

It took him a moment to believe that it was really dead. Even with Ryuu coiled harmlessly around the stake, indicating there was no danger he was afraid that it might suddenly come to life again.

It had once delighted in playing games.

It wasn't until the corpse started to disintegrate that he finally came back to full awareness of his surroundings. He was shaking, he realized. Small shaky tremors he could feel in his hands and knees. Whether it was from delayed shock or relief, he wasn't certain. But the stare Doumeki was giving him said that the other man had noticed.

Just the sight of Doumeki was enough for him to pull himself together. He wasn't a child any longer. His eyes fell on the stake which Ryuu coiled around. He had responsibilities. He had a promise to fulfil.

Kimihiro walked over, stepping carefully to avoid touching the dismembered crows. He couldn't avoid the wavering black tatters, though and flinched as they brushed against his legs. Thankfully it took only a few moments to reach the stake that Ryuu still curled around.

Kimihiro stared down on what remained of the grotesque creature that had slipped through the wards. All that was left was a mess of bone and flesh that was quickly dissolving into a puddle of black liquid. The hateful eyes were gone, rent by Ryuu's slashing claws.

He reached out and grasped the stake, Ryuu swarming up his arm, and pulled it free with a savage twist. The body abruptly collapsed into itself sinking into the ground. Kimihiro regarded the dying grass for a moment then tightened his grip around the stake. A bright glow enveloped its length and when it retreated, the foul liquid that had stained the end and splashed up its length was gone. With it cleansed, he sought out the correct spot and inserted it into the ground at the base of the old tree, filling in another point of the ward they were resurrecting.

When he turned around he found that Doumeki was giving him that look again. The one that said that he wanted answers and he wasn't going to budge until he got them. Kimihiro almost smiled. At least one thing was constant in the turbulent change that this day had brought.

"What was it?" Doumeki's eyes turned to the spot where the stake had stood. He was eyeing the dying grass warily.

"Something similar to what was at the shrine outside Daiworth." Kimihiro was careful with his words. "But more powerful." He glanced at the stake. "It shouldn't have been able to breach the wards even damaged as they are." At least not without being detected.

Doumeki pinned him with a narrow gaze. The prince seemed to realize that he wasn't saying everything. "And the crows?"

Kimihiro's eyes lowered to the ground, following the trailing black tatters. "A distraction. The remains of its amusement. Such things always find pleasure in death and destruction." He glanced back at Doumeki. "I would appreciate a cleansing rite, if possible."

Doumeki frowned. "You aren't going to burn them?"

Kimihiro shook his head. "I don't need to." It wouldn't change what had happened. Nor could the black tatters be released. All he could do was seal the ward and hope that the point would gradually cleanse the area. But it would be inhabited by the black flickers long after the sundered bodies were gone.

The Keeper was frowning at the ground. His gaze moved from the scattered crows to the remains of the thing which would have only been a patch of dying grass to his eyes. "Why did it come here?" The gold eyes lifted, pinning him with a direct stare.

Kimihiro found it suddenly hard not squirm. Despite the simple question, he knew exactly what Doumeki was asking. Why the creature had made a beeline for his estate when the last had been at Daiworth.

His gaze lowered to the crows. Despite his knowledge, there were things going on that even he was not certain off. But what he did know told him that the time had finally come. What his entire line had fought against was now coming to pass. They were finally attempting to seek re-entry into the capital.

He eyed Doumeki. He hadn't told the prince anything about the battle that had been waged silently through the years. Not even all the Keepers had been aware of it. Certainly none of the current ones. Haruka had been the last that he knew of. Kimihiro had withheld the knowledge from Doumeki on the grounds that once the prince knew, he would throw himself into the struggle. And that would be at cross-purposes with what he had been doing for the last few years.

He had given his word.

But now...now it was vital that Doumeki knew. Knew enough so that he would take precautions to ensure his safety. Kimihiro didn't want another close call like Doumeki's chance escape from Lord Halstead's painting. Something that was now almost inevitable with the way that events were going now.

Kimihiro found himself caught between his promise and the execution of his duty. With Doumeki accompanying him outside the estate, however, the situation would soon become clear without any explanation. Though he didn't say much, Doumeki saw everything. It was one of the things that made him so annoying.

Kimihiro suddenly made up his mind. "The estate supports the Southern Ward. To break it would weaken the cardinal wards, thus the protections of the city." He met Doumeki's gaze. "Ever since the capital was founded, there has been a need to protect against various entities of the supernatural world. As Keeper you know this."

"Those that were displaced when the capital was established." Doumeki frowned. He obviously thought that Kimihiro was trying to deflect his questions.

He wasn't. Not entirely.

"Not only those." Kimihiro rested a hand against the trunk of the ancient trunk. He found that the solid presence of the tree beside him, now enforced by the stake at its base, was soothing. It helped to dull his sense of the flickering lines that wavered desolately above the ground they had been chained to. "Aside from the elemental entities of the second world there are others. Powerful goryo and monoke." He frowned. "In the past many were excluded outside the wards as they were too powerful to be banished. As a result the wards have always needed to be maintained against certain threats."

He looked up to see that Doumeki was silent, watching him intently. The frown was gone. "The Watanuki line was involved in the exclusion of many." Kimihiro's mouth twisted. "You could say that certain beings still hold a grudge."

The prince's gaze moved to the patch of wilting vegetation where the creature had lurked, eyes narrowing as the grass continued to die before his eyes. "And this was one of them."

"Yes." But only one. A weak pawn at best. A cold hand slid into his chest to squeeze his heart as he remembered. Remembered the blood stained hand that had cupped his cheek and the foul breath that had fanned across his face as lantern yellow eyes had stared deep into his own. Pain flared through his eye and he shakily ground the heel of his hand into the socket.

Doumeki had caught the movement. He stared at stared at Kimihiro for a long moment. But when he finally spoke it was on a different topic. "What rite do you want?"

Kimihiro felt some of the tension leave his shoulders. Doumeki was leaving it for now. He had bought a little more time.

xXx


	32. Present Reality VII

Entwining Fates:

Present Reality

VII

The last point, situated on a slight rise, had a clear sightline back to the mansion. Doumeki stood staring at the view, an intent expression on his face as he studied the building that dominated the landscape. He'd been doing it for the last five minutes and Kimihiro cast him a sidelong glance before turning his attention to the last stake.

The silver pole was imbedded deeply in the soil between the thick roots of the ancient pine. It was the last point. The boundary ward had been effectively resurrected. If Kimihiro concentrated he could faintly feel the strengthened points that ringed the mansion. It was like a ring of candles set around the edge of a ballroom. They were faint points but they nevertheless lit up their surroundings.

There had been no further interruptions as they strengthened each of the remaining points. But instead of being relieved, Kimihiro found the absence of the spirits that had leaked into the estates was worrying. Even with Doumeki's presence, he would have expected to have caught sight of at least one of them. A few of those he had seen outside the window were strong enough to withstand the repulsion that Doumeki unconsciously expelled.

But he hadn't seen them. He hadn't even sensed them. It bothered him.

After one more glance at his surrounds, Kimihiro forcibly steered his thoughts back to the task at hand. While the secondary boundary ensured that no other spirits could encroach on the mansion, there was still the possibility that it could be broken. And then the spirits on the estate would be free to wander as they willed.

He had no intention of letting that happen.

Kimihiro reached a hand into his pocket to grasp the silver pocket watch and lowered his other hand onto the cool silver of the stake. The net of the boundary ward burst into his awareness. They were no longer single flickers but sixteen blazing pillars that burned fiercely and steadily. But they paled compared to the central point they surrounded. The mansion was like a bonfire.

Hand tightening on the sliver in his grasp, Kimihiro dredged up the power that always lay sightly out of reach. The response was more sluggish than usual but after a moment, he felt the familiar twinge along his nerves, a brief pull of hot wire, as he connected watch and stake. Kimihiro sealed the ward as he had once before. It was risky. He was in essence linking the ward to himself. Not as the source of its power or even as one of its points. Rather as a seamless insertion into its living net. He would be able to feel any encroachment that attempted the wards.

Of course there was a down side. If the wards were broken then he, linked as he was, would be damaged unless he could disengage himself in time. Last time he hadn't been quick enough. But it was worth the risk. He couldn't allow anything like that slip onto the grounds again, unnoticed.

He grimaced as a sudden thought occurred to him. Hikideshi wasn't going to be pleased.

Kimihiro released his grip on the stake. The feel of the sixteen points still remained as his fingers left the ward-embossed metal. They were a bit fainter but still there. Kimihiro let go of the watch in his pocket. Once again they were faint flickers that he could push to the edge of his awareness. But if they faltered, he would know.

Kimihiro's eyes turned to Doumeki. The prince was still staring back at the mansion. Brow furrowing, Kimihiro approached the other man, unable to help gazing warily at their surroundings. Doumeki had known something was wrong before and he wasn't taking any chances.

Gold eyes flickered sidewise as the lord stopped at the prince's side. Without explaining why he had been staring so intently, Doumeki turned back to the stake. "You've finished?" His gaze turned back to Kimihiro, surveying him intently as if for damage.

Trust Doumeki to be aware of what he had done. "I'm fine." It was true. Entering the ward's circle didn't expend much power. And Ryuu's destruction of the twisted elemental hadn't cost him - the construct had used the power of the stake rather than his own.

Doumeki didn't look like he agreed with that assessment and Kimihiro glared at him. "I'm fine." He glanced off towards the mansion, the same prospect that Doumeki had been viewing. "It's nearly lunchtime. We should head back."

As he suspected, the mention of food was enough to divert Doumeki. There were no further comments as they made their way back to the carriage.

xXx

There was relief on the faces of the driver and footman as they reached the carriage, Doumeki carrying the empty bag. Doumeki didn't fail to note the way that they ran their eyes over their lord, checking to see if he was still alright. Apparently they knew that resurrecting the ward was not simply a matter of planting stakes.

Kimihiro met their concern with a small reassuring smile before entering the carriage. Once he was inside, however, he slumped back in his seat, hand clasped together as stared out the window. His gaze flickered over briefly as Doumeki settled himself on the opposite seat but he then turned his attention out the window again. "Thank you."

Doumeki blinked. Kimihiro had never thanked him before.

Kimihiro gaze turned from the window and flitted briefly to Doumeki's face before falling to the hands folded in his lap. "It would have been difficult today without your help."

Doumeki leaned forward slightly, trying to make out the expression on Kimihiro's face.

Kimihiro looked up in the continuing silence only to see the prince staring intently at him. His eyes narrowed in a defensive stare even as his cheeks darkened slightly. "What is it?"

Doumeki leaned back in his seat with a slight smile. "Nothing."

It took only a matter of minutes for the sturdy cobs to pull the carriage back to the main drive. The sixteenth point had been the last in the circle around the mansion and they were already close to the hedge-edged drive. Soon the carriage was pulling up in front of mansion behind the prince's carriage which still stood in front of the steps. Doumeki followed the lord out of the carriage and was walking with Kimihiro back to the mansion when a voice behind them stopped then in their tracks.

"My lord." Itsuki had jumped down from his perch and was standing somewhat awkwardly next to the carriage. He cradled a cloth-wrapped package in his arms.

Kimihiro blinked and walked over to stand before the man. "Itsuki?"

The driver held out the bundle which clinked slightly with the movement. "From Miku. She asked me to bring you these when she heard you were ill."

Doumeki glanced sidelong at Kimihiro. The lord hadn't been well when he had left several days ago but the arrival of such package now suggested that his indisposition had lasted longer. It might in part explain why Kimihiro had remained in the mansion even with his request.

The lord looked slightly surprised but accepted the bundle. "Please pass on my thanks." A small smile that had him looking more relaxed than he had all morning curved his lips. "How is Miku?"

Itsuki laughed suddenly, the lines around his eyes deepening. "More like her mother everyday. She's taken Thomas under her wing as if he were her own. A little mother hen." His dark eyes slid to Kichirou. "No doubt she'll be off to make her own nest soon enough."

The footman's face was bright red. His face only darkened further when his lord's smile widened slightly after glancing at his face.

Kimihiro took pity on him, though, and turned his attention back to Itsuki. "Please give Miku my thanks." He raised the little bundle in front of his chest in illustration. "And pass on my regards."

Itsuki nodded solemnly and Kimihiro headed back to the mansion, cloth wrapped package held to his side.

"What is it?"

Kimihiro blinked, his dark blue eyes turning to Doumeki in question.

"The gift from your tenant." Doumeki was curious. Curious as to why a tenant woman was giving her lord gifts.

Comprehension flooded Kimihiro's eyes. "Miku has a small orchard. She makes a range of toiletries that sell well within the capital. When I'm ill she sends me some of her bath oils."

Doumeki's mouth tilted. Toiletries from a tenant. Scented bath oils. Despite his adherence to propriety, Kimihiro seemed unaware of the implications behind some of his actions. Doumeki's smile widened slightly. It boded well for when the time came to give his own gift. Doumeki's proposition wasn't regarded as proper by any means in this day and age.

Kimihiro was giving him a wary sidelong glance. It suddenly occurred to Doumeki that if the lord accepted such gifts often he might very well use the products. He took a step closer and sniffed, hoping to catch the scent.

His efforts were met with a dark blue glare and Kimihiro hastened his steps to put some distance between them. He strode quickly across the gravel drive, outpacing the prince. His dark blue eyes flittered briefly to the prince's carriage sitting on the drive and then he was passing between the two unicorns and ascending the short flight of stairs to the entrance.

The door swung open at his approach, Hikideshi standing in the doorway. The butler's sharp dark eyes raked over his lord before sliding to Doumeki. He gave a small, nearly imperceptible nod before stepping back and letting them both inside.

"Tea is ready in the study, my lord." Hikideshi closed the door behind them as they stepped into the foyer. "I have taken the liberty of retrieving several items from the library for His Highness."

Kimihiro stopped in his tracks, shooting a sharp look at the butler.

The older man was unmoved. He simply stared impassively back at his lord.

Doumeki watched the confrontation with narrowed eyes. There had always been hints that Kimihiro's butler was more than a simple servant. And after what he had seen today, that assessment had only been strengthened. But he had never seen the man clash with his master before.

It was Kimihiro who backed down first. His eyes lowered and he nodded. "Thank you, Hikideshi." He turned away and headed towards the east wing, his steps somewhat slower than they had been before. Doumeki was unable to see his expression and glanced at the butler in hopes that the man might give him some clue to the situation.

The black eyes met his own for a moment before the butler dipped his head into a deep nod. "Your Highness." His eyes slid to the east corridor where Kimihiro was already disappearing from sight.

The man was clearly not going to say anything more. Doumeki crossed the foyer with a frown flattening his mouth. He cast a look over his shoulder as he entered the eastern corridor but the butler was already gone.

xXx

The fire was crackling in the grate, spreading warmth through the study. Kimihiro gave it a fleeting glance before letting his eyes fall on the low table set between the two armchairs. The tea set was laid out as Hikideshi had said. As were three slim volumes that rested on the table before the seat that the prince usually took.

"What are they?"

Kimihiro barely refrained from jumping as the words were spoken directly behind him. He hadn't heard Doumeki approach but now he could almost feel the other man breathing on his neck.

Kimihiro hastily sat down in his chair, setting the bundle he still carried on the table and picking up the tea pot. "Ancient treatises." He kept his eyes averted from Doumeki as the prince took the seat opposite and picked up one of the slender volumes. He was still somewhat unnerved by the prince's earlier actions on the drive. "On wards, spirits and the second world. Such information can't be found easily these days." His eyes finally rose to meet Doumeki's gold gaze. "And you will need it if you continue to accompany me."

The prince's gaze fell to the thin books again and Kimihiro poured tea into one of the cups on the serving tray, adding sugar but no milk. He set it on a saucer and placed it in front of Doumeki.

The prince's hand caught his own as it retreated across the table. "You said that there were threats to the capital."

Kimihiro stared at him, somewhat startled by the grip that held him. He twitched his hand and Doumeki let go of it in favour of the cup. Kimihiro looked at his hand for a moment, feeling somewhat disturbed and not knowing why, before picking up the teapot once more. "For the past half century the number of supernatural incidents in the capital and the surrounds has been increasing. The opinion of most is that the faltering of tradition - the abolishment of the annual festivals, the decommissioning of shrines and the secularization of the wardens' roles - are responsible."

"Most?" Doumeki's eyes were probing.

"The members of the other supporting lines." Kimihiro took a sip of his tea. There was none of Hikideshi's potions but the warm liquid soothed him nonetheless.

Doumeki was frowning at him, cup forgotten on its saucer. "But you don't agree?"

Kimihiro's eyes lowered. "It doesn't matter what I think. The fact of the situation is that it is clear that the wards are no longer as stable as they once were." He frowned down at the golden liquid in his cup watching the ripples caused by the faint tremors running through his hand. "As a result more and more incursions are arriving from the second world." He took another sip. "I need to identify the cause and put a stop to it before the cardinal wards are threatened."

"So you believe it's more than the loss of old traditions."

Kimihiro's eyes shifted. They were treading close to things that were better left unsaid. "There is likely more than one cause. The wards have been weakened by recent changes but even so the number of problems occurring is more than it should be." His expression darkened, his gaze drifting to the fireplace. The flickering flames reminded him of the sundered crows and his eyes darted away again. "There is at least one individual who is taking advantage of the situation."

There was a slight chink as the prince set down his cup. "The person who gave Lady Amita the brooch." His gold eyes narrowed.

Kimihiro nodded. "In the past the wardens would have been a check on those who dealt in such things. But in the current circumstances..." He made a small gesture of his hand, swivelling it in a throw-away gesture.

"I'll have Alastaire look into it." The prince had a distracted look in his eyes that suggested that he was already thinking about the situation.

"Alastaire?" Kimihiro had never heard Doumeki speak of him before. The use of a first name suggested a close connection and Kimihiro was reminded while he had his secrets, Doumeki had his own. He had met Doumeki less than three months ago. He didn't know the prince at all. The thought caused a slight pang to go through him.

"Lord Woodrow. He's chief warden for the Southern Quarter." Doumeki's eyes had fallen once more to the books laid on the low table in front of him.

Kimihiro eyed Doumeki as he reached to pick up one of the slender tomes that Hikideshi had selected. They had been written by the first Lord Watanuki. A man of tremendous power, he had aided in the construction of the wards that now protected the capital. His writings had been copied several times in the centuries after his death, used by the line to learn about the dangers that they would face and the best way to deal with them. They had been written not only for those with sight but those who could not see the dangers of the second world. As such they were the perfect place to start for the inexperienced Keeper to learn how to protect himself.

The lord watched his guest, the dim light coming through the window and the flickering flames from the fireplace casting uncertain light on the prince's expressionless face. Hikideshi was right. With the faltering of the wards it was time to prepare Doumeki for what was coming.

xXx

The carriage jolted over a rough patch on the road, nearly unseating its passenger. Gold eyes flicked up briefly to the window to spy the passing trees that edged the fields, the winter grasses lit by the slanting sunlight. Doumeki made a mental note to pass on word that the southern road was in need of repair before turning to the thoughts that had been so rudely interrupted.

He had been thinking, as he did all too often these days, of Kimihiro. Or more precisely about he dangers that seemed to be closing in around the pale man. The uneasy foreboding that had forced him out of bed that morning was gone but the events that unfurled later still churned through his mind. Something was stalking Kimihiro. First there had been the destruction of the guardian statue and the damage to the boundary ward. And now something had actively come to seek him out.

Doumeki frowned. Kimihiro had said it was something similar to the elemental creature in the village outside Daiworth. It was logical to believe that Kimihiro's interference in that matter had drawn the attention of the creature that had come to the estate. Or at least it would have been if Kimihiro hadn't shown such fear at the damage to the wards. If Doumeki hadn't seen the expression Kimihiro wore when he confronted what had slipped through the wards. There hadn't been any surprise, just that horrified recognition. Kimihiro had seen such things before.

And then there were the crows.

Doumeki's hand unconsciously fisted where it rested on the bench seat by his side.

They had appeared both times Kimihiro had confronted the elemental creatures. Doumeki's eyes narrowed. And there had been the lone crow that had perched on the unicorn weeks before it had been broken. Whatever forces were moving through the second world had turned their sights on Kimihiro. He had extracted Kimihiro's agreement just in time.

Doumeki glanced down at the books in his lap. The three slim volumes were bound in leather and smooth to the touch. They were worn but well cared for, obviously prized additions of the Watanuki library. A flip through the pages of the first revealed bold black typeset on white, interspersed with illustrations of wards and archaic diagrams.

Kimihiro had been a veritable font of information after raising the boundary. But it had been a selected flow, focusing on the basic facts of the situation rather than what the lord knew. Kimihiro's silence had spoken louder than his words. But what he'd said after Ryuu's destruction of the elemental creature rang true. Displaced spirits. Long-held grudges. Tied in with the role of the lines that supported the cardinal Wards it suggested that was happening now was as tied up with the past as the present.

Doumeki's thoughts turned to the other thing that he had learned. The nature of the painting that had hung in Hikideshi's room. He had seen it in the vantage of the last point they had bolstered in the ward. It was the view of the mansion. Over time it had changed but there was no doubt. The empty slope depicted in the landscape hanging in Hikideshi's room had been identical. It was the site of the mansion before it had been built. And from the anxious way Kimihiro had behaved when he had seen him studying it, Doumeki had the feeling that it was somehow at the crux of whatever Kimihiro was hiding.

And once that was revealed, no doubt he would find out everything he wanted to know about Haruka's death.

Doumeki's glance fell to the books once more. One thing was certain. He had some research to do.

xXx

Kimihiro stood at the study window, staring out at the grounds. With the fading light cast over the path leading to the gardens, it should have been a peaceful sight. But the view was blocked. Spirits crowded hungrily on the other side of the fragile panes, their unblinking gazes locked on the lord who stood behind the warded walls. They had appeared as soon as Doumeki had left, returning from whatever dark corners they had hid themselves in.

"My lord."

Kimihiro turned to see that Hikideshi was standing beside him. The butler's dark eyes were grave as he stared at his lord.

"It was one of them from that night." Kimihiro walked away from the window and suddenly sat down. Even as he said it, he was trying not to remember. A futile effort when the dream that morning had brought the memories so close to the surface. He slipped a shaking hand into a pocket, seeking the comfort of the silver time piece.

A hand rested lightly on his shoulder. There was an unsettling light in the dark eyes that stared down at him. A spark of barely constrained anger. "Was it-?"

Kimihiro flinched. "No." His eyes lowered to the face of the time piece clenched tightly in his hand. The bold archaic numbers stood uncompromising on the face, the hands ticking on unaffected by the events going on around it. "It wasn't Him." Not yet.

Hikideshi was silent for a while. "I did not feel any intrusion through the wards."

The admission was enough to pull Kimihiro out of his darkening thoughts. The butler's face was as solemn as it usually was but his eyes had taken on a watchful cast. It took Kimihiro a few moments to realize what the other man had said. His eyes widened. "You're suggesting that it arrived when-"

Hikideshi inclined his head. "When the wards were initially broken."

Kimihiro's mouth flattened into a thin line as the implications became clear. "It must have been waiting for a break in the wards." He didn't want to contemplate how long the creature had been squatting outside the boundary, waiting for its chance.

"The Keeper did not destroy them all that night." Hikideshi's eyes were distant as he gazed back in the direction of the foyer. In the direction of the two swords that lay waiting on the wall of his room. "Some fled."

Kimihiro's hand worked on the fabric of the chair's arm. "It could be that they are the ones which have been causing some of the problems."

Hikideshi's eyes turned back to his lord in a black glance. "Perhaps." His eyes flickered. "Only time will tell."

Kimihiro's gaze lowered to the table, a heavy feeling settling in his chest. With the incursion of the ward, it was time that he didn't have.

xXx

Well, I said there would be some answers, didn't I? LOL. And quite a few more than I originally intended. slow smile But I suppose it doesn't matter in the long run :D So there you go: quite a lot about Kimihiro's past, hints about Haruka's connection with Kimihiro, some information about Them and Him and quite a lot of foreshadowing. Not to mention a fair bit about Hikideshi XD I'm going to have to let him pick up those swords up again later, I think. It's been a while since he's used them.

The next instalment will be Tainted Land (sounds fun, doesn't it?) which I aim to put up at the end of the month. But before that I'll be posting Loosed Arrow, a little episode following Doumeki's foray into society for some information. That should go up in a week or two. 


	33. AN: Apologies!

AN: God, I'm so sorry! I loaded part three of Painted Fate into Present Reality. I've fixed it now so for those of you who have already read through (I'm so sorry!) you'll have to go back and read it again . I'll make sure it won't happen again.


	34. Loosed Arrow

Replies to Anonymous Reviewers:

**Valiya: **That was definitely me . Sorry about that.

**Sala: **Thanks for letting me know!

**Jess:** Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying it so far.

**A.B.:** Got to love that enthusiasm XD Thanks! I hope you enjoy what comes next.

xXx

AN: This is some what of a side story you owe to the influx of sugar into my system over Easter. My brain goes nuts after it gets some chocolate XD I saw William Powell Firth's _The Fair Troxophites_ and everything started clicking together. Doumeki's gone off on his own again. Good luck keeping him out of trouble, Kimihiro.

xXx

ENTWINING FATES:

LOOSED ARROW

"Your Highness." Lady Fukao sank into a deep graceful curtsey, managing to keep the bow she held untangled from her skirts. "It's not often that you grace us with your presence on such occasions these days." Her painted lips curved into a small smile, neat white teeth mirroring the glint in her eyes.

Doumeki replied with a curt nod of acknowledgement. "Lady Fukao." His eyes ran over her attire. She wore a wine-red silk dress, the overskirt gathered up to show another thin panel of skirts the same colour. The sleeves were closely fitted along her arms to avoid letting lace or open sleeves compromising her aim. A small hat perched daintily on her elaborately coiled hair, the small brim providing enough shade to cut the weakened light of the winter sun. An elegant curve of black feathers, matching the hue of her dark hair and her black gloves, curved back gracefully from the hat's band.

His gaze turned from Lady Fukao to briefly scan over their surroundings. It was true. With a choice he usually avoided gatherings like these.

They stood on a large green that was being used to host the event, the orange brick of the Lord Faulkner's mansion visible through the trees that edged the open space. The green, prepared for the lord's seasonal archery contest, was set up with all the care that was usually invested in the balls that were the highlights of the social season. Almost twenty butts had been erected along one end of the carefully tended field. Contestants, lords and ladies who had come to demonstrate their skill for the applause of their peers, stood with their bows in small clusters at the end of the range. A little further back gathered the nobles who had come to cheer on mutual acquaintances, propose new alliances and observe the current social currents. Large, portable wrought-iron braziers had been spread out on the green to ward off the chill of the mild winter day, marking focus points of the finely-dressed guests. Beyond this churning, brightly coloured stream of political jostling lay the sprawl of a large marquee. The white tent was open on the side facing the competition, revealing the large number of guests who sat and took tea at the myriad of white tables that had been set at regular intervals. As the competition continued and the number of butts was reduced as the winners of each round were pitted against each other, they would gather in ever-increasing numbers to crowd around to view the victor.

The sport had become popular in the last few decades. In the past archery competitions had been held within the cardinal Wards, and the smaller shrines throughout the city, during the numerous festivals that were held each year. They had been part of the rites to ward off evil but with the ban of the festivals, the aim of the sport had shifted. Society had seized upon the popular activity and turned it into yet another event on the social calendar, an opportunity for the nobles and upper classes to preen and engage in politics. The butts had moved from the sacred precincts of the wards and onto the carefully manicured ranges of various lords and ladies. The more sombre traditional garb was eschewed for fashionable suits and dresses that had been specially tailored for the occasion yet had lost none of their colour or attractive glitter. It had, in short become a secular activity.

There had been a time when Doumeki had been a faithful participant. But while he kept his skills sharp, the prince no longer picked up his bow to be displayed in front of the lords and ladies that were his subjects. He far preferred the privacy of the range set within the grounds of the Southern Ward.

He certainly wasn't here today for archery. Doumeki's eyes returned to Lady Fukao, who had risen from her curtesy and was now regarding him with bright eyes.

The lady cast him a charming smile before letting her gaze turn to fall on the lady who was standing several paces before them, readying her aim to shoot at the distant target set across the field. "Have you decided to join us once more?" Her dark eyes slid back to him, her smile widening a fraction. "I would dearly love to see you shoot your arrows."

"My duties as Keeper prevent me." He had practically ensured that it was so.

Lady Fukao was a woman of consummate wit. She was intelligent and beautiful. Her manner was charming and she had a wide range of interests that made her the perfect companion. But she was also a woman of deadly ambition. As all of her previous husbands had discovered.

Doumeki was under no illusions where the lady was concerned. She was on the prowl for her next husband. And the prince knew that the title of princess held great allure for her. With his brother out of the country, only one prince was left to catch. Southern Keeper wasn't as illustrious as crown prince but the position still held power that was tempting.

There was a muted thwack as the lady released her arrow and it hit the distant target. Lady Fukao clapped, joining the applause around them as it became clear that Lady Isitt's arrow had hit the ring surrounding the bullseye. Lady Fukao's gaze darted briefly out to see the score before turning back to the prince. "But surely that isn't so, Your Highness. You made time to attend my auction." Her smile was teasing but there was an edge to it like the minute unsheathing of a dagger.

It was clear what still rankled in the lady's mind. There had been a hidden edge to the manner of the ladies since that day. The spectre of Lady Minami loomed large in their minds and they were edgy, like a pack of well-bred hounds that had lost sight of the fox they wished to rip apart.

"It was quite a welcome surprise." The lady continued, her eyes now fixed on the next lady who was moving forward to make her shot. It was Lady Yuhara, a regular on the archery circuit who was well-known for her skill. It would be hard for anyone to wrest the lead from her. "One of the many surprises of that day."

Doumeki remained silent, making no pretence that he was watching the lady rather than the competition that continued on around them.

"I would have never imagined that some of those curios would sell." There was a small quirk of bright lips. "But there seem to be some avid collectors among us. Even if such things have gone out of fashion." She fell silent as Lady Yuhara prepared to aim, eyes fixed firmly on the woman, a slight smile on her lips.

A hush descended on the crowd of spectators as Lady Yuhara drew back her on her bowstring, bringing the sombre fletching of her arrow back to her ear. She sighted down the arrow, taking her aim. The silence stretched out for a few seconds before the lady's arrow was suddenly released. But Doumeki could see that it was somewhat early, a slight flinch at the last minute sending the arrow astray, embedded into the outer-most ring of the target.

"What a pity." Lady Fukao's voice was soft yet it held a strange thread of satisfaction. "Lady Yuhara is usually such a wonderful shot." Her hands rose to join the polite clapping that saluted the disappointed lady. She was examining her bow with a perplexed expression.

Lady Fukao's smile widened. She finally turned her gaze back to the prince at her side. "But you made an interesting purchase of your own. I would never have guessed you were interested in such things." Her smile widened further, an amused line that was not matched by the dark guarded shields of her eyes. "But perhaps you bought it for someone special?"

He had but it was nothing that involved her. The mere thought raised a sliver of anger within him which he clamped down on hard. Lady Fukao was a perceptive woman and Doumeki had the feeling that he needed to be careful around her. A feeling heightened by what he had just observed. "I've recently become interested in my family history."

A small frown creased the lady's brow as if that had not been the response she had expected. "Yes. It originally belonged to Lady Mao, I believe. One of Lord Takashita's ancestor's acquired it some time ago." She fell silent for a moment, apparently thinking something over.

Doumeki's gaze wandered. His eyes fell on a dress of dark blue the same shade of Kimihiro's eyes among another group of archers across the field. He was so caught by the colour that it took him a moment to realize who was wearing the garment. Lady Hishida caught his glance and sent him a knowing smile before turning back to the competition. She had changed tactics recently. She no longer brushed up against him but tended to remain at a polite distance in public. The lady had found another way to advance her suit.

"It was surprising how many of the objects she bought had dark histories." Doumeki turned his attention back to Lady Fukao who was staring out across the range at the various rounds that were in progress. "But I suppose that is only to be expected. She is linked to _that_ dark line after all." Lady Fukao's eyes narrowed, suddenly like black chips of glass. "The entire family is riddled with madness and ill fortune. One only has to look at the current Lord Watanuki to see how far it has fallen." Her lips pursed. "A pity. He is reputed to be quite a handsome man."

The lady's eyes flicked back to Doumeki. They widened slightly and she quickly made to backtrack on her words. "But such an unfortunate man deserves our pity." She seemed to realize that the prince's unnatural stillness indicated his displeasure with the topic. "Is that not what the old tenants say, Your Highness?"

Before Doumeki could say anything, there was a call from the line in front. Lady Fukao tightened her grip on her bow and readied herself to take her place at the shooting line. "It has been a pleasure, Your Highness. I hope you will stay to see the outcome of the competition." Her smile widened. "I have a feeling that I will go far today." And with those words she sank into a deep curtsey and left to take her shot.

Doumeki watched as she walked up to take her place, dark wine skirts rustling with her passage. He stayed long enough to see her take up her stance and line up her shot before turning away. He had other people to talk to.

The wave of applause that rose as he walked away indicated that Lady Fukao had indeed achieved her winning shot.

xXx

As the day wore on and the sun rose higher on its slanted course, the marquee was steadily abandoned in favour of mingling on the green. Like bears emerging from hibernation, Lord Faulkner's noble guests were suddenly clustered in groups which were engaging in loud conversation, taking turns along the range to view the progress of the competition or getting down to the business of establishing new alliances among the powerful families gathered for the outing. Or, if one was a woman eligible for marriage, seeking to gain the notice of Her Majesty's oldest son.

Doumeki found to his annoyance that his recent long absences from the social circuit made the hangers-on only more determined. Everywhere he turned there were people trying to catch his attention or corner him for a brief conversation in order to bolster their own status. The young ladies were even worse. Faced with others' failure in the past and their own closing window of eligibility, they were almost frantic to catch his attention. Doumeki found himself at the centre of a swirl of colourful dresses, the focus of painted eyes and lips as the younger ladies tried to catch his notice. He silently bore with the tinkling laughter and breathless enthusiasm but it was wearing. At least the older ladies were somewhat more restrained.

Within a short time he was cornered, his movements bogged down by the courtiers who flocked around him. Doumeki found the noble tide relentless, akin to a school of sharks circling a dying whale, waiting for a chance to bite off a chunk. The analogy somewhat surprised him. Even at the height of his misery as crown heir, he had been able to bear with the offensive battering, counting down the minutes until he could leave and retire to his own apartments. But with the knowledge that the time of the appointment he had made was drawing closer, Doumeki found his patience fraying. He was not here to indulge the self-absorbed preening of his peers.

After departing from the Watanuki estate after the secondary boundary had been erected, Doumeki had read the three volumes Kimihiro had given him cover to cover. Most of their content was information that he already been taught, with one large exception. Instead of the rituals and rites that focused mostly on maintenance of shrines and wards, the author of the three books had concentrated on describing the signs that indicated their deterioration. A great deal of it required the ability of the sight but there were also detailed descriptions of physical changes that would occur along with those that were visible to the second world.

As soon as he had finished reading, Doumeki had set Riku to getting the relevant passages copied for distribution among the priests and wardens of the Southern Quarter. They were to be sent out with instructions he was to be notified if any of the changes were observed. That was something that he alone could do, a small act that he hoped would make a difference in the silent battle that Kimihiro was engaged in.

But there was other information that had concerned Doumeki. Such as the list of various abilities that tended to crop up in the population, abilities that could be misused and open the way for other, less human threats. It had been disturbing enough for Doumeki leave the Southern Ward in order to look among the people who could wreak the most damage with such abilities: the nobles of the empire. At the same time he had hoped to find some information about the person Kimihiro had spoken of, the person who was working in the shadows of the recent supernatural events. The individual who had given Lady Amita the brooch. And, if possible, Doumeki intended to track down the source of the painting that had fallen into Lord Halstead's hands and caused such disaster. Lord Faulkner's winter archery meet had been the next convenient social gathering, thus his presence here today.

Doumeki's first move had been to approach Lady Fukao. It was clear that Kimihiro had gone to auction to retrieve certain artefacts. But the use of such an elaborate disguise likely meant that he had been making an effort to avoid not only Doumeki's notice but those who attended the auction. With what he had learnt, Doumeki had come to the conclusion that Kimihiro had been avoiding the notice of someone in particular. The pencilling in of the words 'black widow' in an archaic hand at the margin of the page describing people to be wary of had suggested just exactly who it was.

After talking to Lady Fukao and seeing the inexplicable faltering of Lady Yuhara's shot, Doumeki was convinced that the lady possessed some sort of ability. It cast some her previous actions into an alarming light. The fact that Kimihiro was so wary of her that he had dressed as a woman was enough for Doumeki to be inclined to watch her more closely in the future. And to keep a close eye on the actions of everyone else he encountered. If there were others such as the lady, and it was almost certain that there were, it was becoming understandable why Kimihiro kept to his mansion.

But that still left unseen presence that was moving behind the scenes. Doumeki had opted to use the enthusiasm of those around him to his own advantage. He had walked the green, allowing the brightly coloured lords and ladies to approach, a flock of bright butterflies around a comparatively drab flower. Rather than avoiding the nobles as he had recently, Doumeki bore with the obligatory social interactions that his presence as prince and Southern Keeper required. He exchanged pleasantries with those who came to talk to him and listened to their conversation, inserting a seemingly-idle comment here or there to send their eager tongues onto the path that he desired.

He heard more than he wanted to. Lady Amita's deterioration was dwelt on with the loving detail reserved for the fall of someone who had long been the envy of others. She had been a close friend of his grandfather when he was alive, and though the old ways had been distasteful, the previous Keeper had been a popular figure in society, no matter the crown's disapproval. Haruka had been a sly, forbidden presence that had been an irresistible lure for the fickle attentions of a court that delighted in the dangerous, the sensational. Even years after his death, there was still a grudge against the woman who had so monopolized his attentions. Her increasing deterioration and increasingly erratic behaviour had been watched closely by all and was willingly related to him now. But despite the gleeful observances and sharp comments, no one seemed to remember the lady's gold brooch much less where she had acquired it.

It was somewhat easier to gather information on the matter of Lord Halstead's painting. The lord's painting had been well-known in court, the lord having often spoken of his prized art piece, and the sudden removal of Lady Halstead to the Northern Ward now had the rumours multiplying. Yet once again, Doumeki found that no one knew the provenance of the cursed canvas. It appeared that on that account Lord Halstead had been rather closed-mouth. Lady Halstead might know but she was in no condition to talk. The lords and ladies were more inclined to dwell on the latest twist in the rumours and what Doumeki heard didn't please him at all.

After several hours of listening to the malicious gossip, Doumeki finally let the conversation go where it would. He hadn't quite reached the stage where he was willing to leave - there was always the chance that some idle conversation would provide some interesting information - but he was beginning to wish that there would be an interruption that would cut the aimless chatter.

Rescue came abruptly and from an unlikely source.

The prince was sitting at one of the tables set up under the marquee eating a selection of savouries as he listened to the conversation that flowed around the table. The plain white tablecloth covered the table, weighted down by elegant serving platters that held a mixture of heated fingerfoods. Servers with tiers of small sandwiches had been placed at strategic intervals down the table, alternating with the accruements of the tea service that served the multitude of teacups that bordered the table. As soon as the prince had taken a seat, a mixture of the more persistent lords and ladies who had been following him across the green and those in the vicinity, had settled down to fill every seat. They were now engaged in a glittering conversation that was designed to demonstrate their wit and knowledge to the man they sought to impress.

But Doumeki's thoughts were focused more on the food than the talk. Previously he would have thought the small pies and quiches rather good but after the last few months eating Kimihiro's food he found them merely passable. It was somewhat of a disappointment and another factor that made him feel somewhat out of place. The other was the conversation that flowed around him.

"-I simply cannot find anything to wear." Lady Kate was lamenting her wardrobe with a vigour that was echoed by those around her. "I have been looking through all the boutiques but there is absolutely nothing fitting. Nothing I would wear in public."

The lady now wore a perfectly acceptable gown to Doumeki's eyes. He considered pointing that out but took a bite out a quiche instead. The filling was somewhat bland, the egg and meat crossing his tastebuds without a memorable aftertaste to leave behind. Doumeki popped the rest in his mouth, confirming that his assessment was right. It needed some more herbs. Maybe some salt.

"-the preparations are already in full swing. It's less than two months away." Lord Scarisbrick was talking with some excitement. His pale face was flushed and his fine thinning hair was almost floating as he spoke. "Everyone will be attending." His dark eyes turned to Doumeki. "And you, Your Highness? Will you be attending the New Year's ball?"

Doumeki suddenly found himself the centre of attention, everyone at the table wanting to know what his answer would be. He had attended the celebrations in the past but since he had taken the position of Keeper at the Southern Ward, choosing his father's lineage over that of his mother, relations with the queen had been strained. Busy with his duties and his visits to see Kimihiro, Doumeki hadn't really considered whether he would attend the royal celebrations this year. He had continued the tradition in the six years after leaving the palace but now the question had been raised, Doumeki found himself undecided whether he would continue to do so.

"Your Highness!"

Attention shifted from the prince to the source of the voice which suddenly interrupted. A plump motherly woman was close by, threading through the maze of occupied chairs and tables that spread through the marquee. Her progress was somewhat awkward with her full-width gown of emerald satin, which had a tendency to snag on the spindly furniture.

Doumeki immediately stood and helped clear the way, pulling out a chair for the older woman to take a seat.

"Oh thank you, Your Highness." Face colouring with the attention, Lady Dexter sank into a deep curtesy before sinking into the offered chair. "I am not as nimble as I once was."

Doumeki caught the half-hidden smirks at that greeted that remark and frowned, sinking back into his own chair.

Lady Dexter didn't seem to notice the barely concealed mockery of those who sat around the table. A gloved hand rose to smooth a loose length of silvering blond hair back into her simple coif. "Your Highness." The lady's pale green eyes met his own earnestly. "I am sorry for the interruption but I was wondering if I might have your time for a few moments."

They had spoken several times in the past but the lady had never made such a request before. After the auction the prince had paid more attention to her. Since she had been seen in the presence of Lady Minami that day, it had added fuel to the rumours but Doumeki ignored the whispers. Kimihiro had spent an extended period of time in the woman's company and she in return had given him aid. It was enough, his own liking for the older woman aside, to have him willing to grant her an audience even at such a short notice. If it provided the excuse to escape the pressing courtiers, then all the better.

"Of course." Doumeki sent a commanding stare around the table, making it clear he wanted to be left alone. After a moment or so of shocked silence, the lords and ladies started to rise, making weak excuses as they left the vicinity. After the last noble had left the table, the prince turned back to Lady Dexter. The lady had a slightly worried expression on her face as she watched the lords and ladies disperse to join whispering clusters across the marquee. But her gaze turned back to the prince when she realized Doumeki's eyes were fixed on her.

"Your Highness." Lady Dexter seemed to have trouble meeting his gaze. Her eyes flicked from his face to her lap where her gloved hands were twining nervously together. She hesitated a moment then her hands clenched and she met his gaze firmly. "I was wondering what you know of Lord Watanuki."

Doumeki grew still. This was the last thing he had expected. If the topic was not enough of a shock the lady's manner certainly was. There was none of her verbose cheer, only a look of concentrated concern.

"I have been hearing some disturbing rumours lately involving the recent tragic events surrounding Lord and Lady Halstead." Her pale green eyes acquired a saddened cast. "A terrible incident. Lady Halstead has still not recovered even after this time."

"Do you know the lady?" Doumeki hadn't been under that impression.

Lady Dexter's pale eyes turned back to Doumeki. They were quite a lovely shade, almost a pale jade. "No, I am sad to say. But I visit the Northern Ward quite often to visit my husband." Her eyes softened once more. "He suffered the stroke you see."

Her voice became brisk, her words hastening to another topic as if to hide her pain. "What I have heard seems to suggest that Lord Watanuki was somehow involved in the Lady's Halstead's sudden illness. That he is somehow to blame." A pensive frown creased her brow. "I am aware of the rumours that surround him but this one seems quite malicious. I am sorry to ask such a question but as Southern Keeper you must know about the matter. Would you know how the rumour came about?"

Doumeki wondered if she suspected the real identity of the widow she had met at Lady Fukao's auction. The lady was not one to ask after matters such as the veracity of rumours she had heard. If anything, she tended to divert the conversation away from remarks that bandied about the blackening of one's character. For her to be asking now of all times, and about Kimihiro of all people, suggested that her concern had to be motivated by more than idle curiosity.

"I am not certain about the source of the rumour." Though he could hazard a guess. Thwarted by legal recourse, it was likely that Lord Halstead had set the rumour mill in motion to take revenge for the loss of his painting. "But I can assure you that as Southern Keeper I place no blame on Lord Watanuki for Lady Halstead's sudden illness." And if it was possible he was going to attempt to squash those rumours. It would only distress Kimihiro when he finally heard them.

Doumeki frowned suddenly. If he hadn't heard them already. Kimihiro tended to be closed-mouthed about what he considered his personal affairs.

Lady Dexter looked somewhat relieved. "I thought there was a chance that it might cause some trouble for Lord Watanuki. I am glad to see that is not the case. It is horrible what happened to him and such things should not be taken in the way they are." She seemed quite upset at the idea. "A person's illness should not be used to darken their character."

A loud round of applause came from outside the marquee before Doumeki could ask further about her words. He had never gotten a clear picture of what had happened during Kimihiro's last social appearance and he got the feeling that Lady Dexter was referring to the lord's spectacularly public fit.

"They must be nearing the end of the competition." Lady Dexter had turned in her chair to gaze out the marquee entrance at the crowd visible outside, a mixture of bright colours against the grass. She turned her attention back to Doumeki. "Thank you for your time, Your Highness." She rose with a rustle of emerald skirts and sank into a deep curtsey.

Doumeki also stood. "Are you interested in the competition?"

"Oh no." Lady Dexter's voice had taken on a lighter air and her hand flapped in a little dismissive circle. "I was never apt at such things." A smile suddenly transformed her features, making her the gregarious older woman he was used to seeing. "But my Janine has taken quite an interest. Last year she advanced to the last round. She's done very well this year - I am expected to cheer her on."

Lady Dexter's daughter must have had a great skill indeed. The last round involved the top ten competitors of each division. Doumeki had always gone through to the final round but even that had been a challenge.

Doumeki held out an elbow. "Allow me to escort you." He wanted to make it clear that the lady held his favour. Perhaps it would lessen the sniping that she no doubt otherwise endured.

The lady's pale eyes widened slightly, a hint of colour rising to her cheeks. "Your Highness, it wouldn't do for you to be seen with an old lady like me on your arm." Her eyes darted to the nobles watching them from across the marquee.

"I insist." He was somewhat disturbed by her self-depreciation. He'd rather have Lady Dexter on his arm rather than a creature such as Lady Fukao or Lady Hishida.

Lady Dexter's pale eyes turned back to him, searching his face. A sweet smile suddenly turned up her lips and she slid her gloved hand into the crook of his elbow. "Very well, Your Highness."

A multitude of eyes turned towards them as they made their way out of the marquee. The whispered conversation of those who had left the table had stopped and now the discarded lords and ladies made no pretence that they were staring. As soon as Doumeki and Lady Dexter emerged from the marquee, conversations faltered. Embroidered and bejewelled bodies turning as the gathered lords and ladies realized that the queen's oldest son was showing favour to one of their number. Doumeki ignored the stares and steered the lady on his arm towards the crowd that had gathered around the final butt that was being set up at the centre of the field. The lords and ladies parted before them as if stung, staring and whispering. Lady Dexter's arm tightened minutely on his arm but her face was as cheerful as ever when he glanced down at her face.

Their passage had a curious stilted air at first as the news spread. But as Doumeki only gave a blank gold gaze to the eyes that watched them, the stares became more covert and the walk became more like the polite escort it was rather than a public spectacle. It was almost a normal stroll by the time Lady Dexter stopped somewhat short of the crowd near the final contestants. Several of the finalists who were waiting for their turn had turned to watch them, Lady Fukao and Lady Hishida among their number. Lady Dexter took in the situation in with a glance and removed her hand. "Thank you, Your Highness. I will be fine now."

"You're welcome." It wasn't a lie. Doumeki was pleased that he had aided the only other person in society who seemed to see Kimihiro for more than what rumour painted him.

Something of his thoughts must have leaked onto his face. Lady Dexter suddenly grasped one of his hands in both of her own. "Thank you, Your Highness. It's good to see that you are keeping an eye on the matter. I would hate to see that young man suffer for something that was not his fault." With a respectful curtsey, she took her leave, heading off into the crowd that stood attendance around the last of the competitors.

Doumeki watched her disappear into the colourful swirl with thoughtful eyes, ignoring the renewed stares and whispers. Perhaps he had been talking to the wrong people.

xXx

Doumeki left without seeing the result of the tournament. He had gotten everything that he could for now and he had another appointment that he needed to keep. Doumeki had used the unmarked carried that was devoid of the Doumeki crest for the journey to Lord Faulkner's estate. The vehicle stood ready to leave as he had ordered and as he approached the footman jumped down from the driver's perch in preparation to open the door. Doumeki was nearly at the carriage when the final interruption of the day caught up with him.

"It seems that I'm not going blind after all." The voice had a lazy, amused air that was all too familiar. "Prince Doumeki actually is present at Lord Faulkner's winter archery meet."

"Alastaire." Doumeki turned to see the other man standing behind him on the drive, a mocking smile curving his lips. Alastaire was dressed in what he referred to as his country finery, his jacket slung over one shoulder to reveal the pale grey vest that was threaded through with maple leaves embroidered in green and gold. From what Doumeki could see it was the same as what he usually wore with only a bit more restraint for the rampant embroidery that adorned his court apparel.

Alastaire's smile widened at the annoyed look the prince wore. "You'd think that you weren't happy to see me." He raised a pale eyebrow. "Can it be that I've fallen out of favour?"

Doumeki's eyes narrowed in irritation. "I have an appointment."

"It can wait." The chief warden crossed the distance between them at an annoyingly slow pace. "I need to talk to you. Warden business." He shot the Keeper a pale suddenly appraising glance. "It's always hard to catch a hold of you these days."

Doumeki ignored the implied enquiry. "You have five minutes." He was going to be late. No doubt his arrival would be received by a reception full of angry glares, though he was used to them by now.

Without invitation Alastaire walked past Doumeki and leaned against the side of the carriage. He ignored the proximity of the footman waiting nearby, purposefully blocking the closed door with his body.

The footman cast a questioning glance at his lord and received a curt gesture from Doumeki in reply. The man bowed and retreated to give them both some privacy.

Alastaire watched the footman retreat out of earshot before turning back to Doumeki. "I finally got an audience with Lord Hinata. He'd just come back to the capital." A roll of pale near-colourless eyes. "He's been out hunting in the country for the last few weeks."

Alastaire reached into a pocket and pulled out his coin, starting it in a glittering spin though his fingers. "He couldn't tell me anything about the warehouse. Apparently matters such as managing the storage for his cargo are left to his accountants. After a day or two I managed to track down the mole of a man responsible for it and got the information out of him." The coin span. "He only confirmed that the warehouse hasn't been used for months."

That left the lord out of the matter. "What about employees?"

The coin flicked up into the air with a metallic ring. "Kurogane is exploring the docks indulging in his favourite pastime. Asking questions." Alastaire suddenly grinned. "The last time I saw him it looked like he was ready to use the big sword he's taken to carrying around." His eyes lowered to stare at the coin that twisted through his fingers. "Sometimes I wonder if that's why he was in the palace guard in the first place." His grin widened. "Before something else caught his interest, of course. But even with Fai's calming influence, I suspect I'll have a fair bit of clean up duty by the end of the week."

"Is there anything else?" Alastaire could talk all day if he were so inclined. Amusing as the prospect of Kimihiro's anger was, Doumeki didn't want to be too late. The lord had never failed to admit him but he hadn't been late before, either.

"Anxious to leave, aren't you?" Alastaire smiled mockingly and pushed away from the side of the carriage, the coin returning to his pocket. "I'll keep an eye on Lady Fukao for you. Even though there's the risk that Harriet will suspect my eyes are wandering."

Alastaire had been keeping tabs on him like always. It was a surprising how someone so flashy could disappear into a crowd so easily. Of course, it helped that the crowd was just as brightly attired as he was. "Still with Lady Denham?" It was somewhat of a surprise. Alastaire went through partners at an alarming rate.

Alastaire's eyes were became distant, pale cold vistas of ice. "For now." He suddenly smiled again, his previous expression melting into amusement. "Say hello to Lord Kimihiro for me." And so saying he left, giving a relaxed little wave over one shoulder.

For a moment Doumeki seriously considered assigning the other man some sort of loathsome duty. A search through court for information seemed appropriate but Alastaire was of the temperament that he would consider such a task fun. As it was Doumeki settled on ignoring him as he entered the carriage.

xXx

He was late by the time he reached the mansion. Doumeki left the carriage and crossed the gravel drive, ascending the short flight of steps with brisk long strides. No doubt his tardiness would be counted against him.

The door with its snarling bronze dragon and pale crescent opened as soon as he set foot on the portico. Black eyes swept over him briefly and then Hikideshi was holding the door open to allow him access to the foyer. Doumeki stepped inside, feeling a strange sense of relief once confronted with the familiar stark black on white of the major ward set into the floor.

"His lordship is waiting in the study." The fact that butler didn't offer to take his coat told Doumeki that a show of haste would be preferable to courtesy at this point. Kimihiro must not be in good temper.

Doumeki nodded in thanks for the silent advice and followed the other man as he led the way to the study that nestled at the far end of the east wing. Though the butler's steps didn't seem faster than usual, they reached the study in only a short amount of time. Hikideshi's eyes met the prince's briefly as he knocked and then opened the door.

Kimihiro was in the act of getting up from his armchair as Doumeki entered the room. Despite the blaze in the fireplace, he must have been cold for he wore a plain black coat over his clothes. The dark blue eyes flickered over him in an expression that could only be worry but disappeared into irritation once the lord had gathered that he was unharmed. "You asked me to be ready at four."

In the face of the intimidating glitter that confronted him, the previous concern seemed impossible. But Doumeki had seen it. "I was detained."

Kimihiro was silent for a moment as if expecting more but shot Doumeki an exasperated look when nothing was forthcoming. "Shall we be going, then?" The lord's right hand pressed against his coat pocket, seeking the watch's presence in an absent search of reassurance.

Doumeki felt a spark of anger as he saw it. After the events of last week Kimihiro had become more nervous. Despite the reassertion of his prickly manner, it was slightly blunted by an edge of flinching expectation that didn't suit him. The prince let his gaze fall on the low table set between the two armchairs.

As expected, Kimihiro followed his gaze. He blinked as he saw the empty table before comprehension flashed through his eyes. They rose to stab the prince with a glare flaring with renewed anger. "We're late." It sounded like he was trying not to grind his teeth. "There isn't time for afternoon tea." And with that he stalked to the door, clearly intent on leaving before any more time was wasted. His hand had fallen from his pocket, nervousness forgotten.

Satisfied, Doumeki followed him out of the room.

Kimihiro made his way down the corridor with quick steps, the skirts of his coat flapping around his legs with every step. Doumeki smiled slightly at the sharp movements. It recalled the sharp edge the lord had possessed weeks ago.

"Hikideshi." Kimihiro addressed the butler as soon as they entered the foyer. He started across the ward on the floor, heading towards the front door. "I'll be accompanying His Highness for the rest of the evening."

The butler bowed in acknowledgement. "My lord." He swung open the door to let them outside.

After only a brief hesitation, which Doumeki would have missed if he hadn't been looking for it, the lord exited the mansion and out into the last warding barriers that separated him from the spirits on the drive. Doumeki lengthened his steps and passed him on the portico before descending the steps, not letting Kimihiro hesitate any further. A ploy that worked remarkably well to judge by the muted noise of anger behind him and the sound of boots on the stone steps that soon followed. Doumeki crossed the drive and climbed into the cabin of his waiting carriage. Looking somewhat put upon, Kimihiro followed suit.

"I trust you informed the head priest that you would be late arriving at the shrine." Kimihiro's eyes were narrowed into rebuking blue slits.

Doumeki's mouth twitched. "I suspect he knows by now."

Kimihiro was glaring at him from the opposite seat, clearly taking his amusement as a mockery of his anger.

Doumeki let his smile widen slightly, resisting the urge to extend it even more as Kimihiro's glare deepened. He had a feeling that this new agreement between them was going to lead to all sort of interesting situations.

xXx

Doumeki, you little sweetie. I didn't know you had it in you...well I did, but even so :D Actually Doumeki came up with a lot of surprises in this one. He's got quite an edge himself. Well-bred hounds indeed XD

I don't know what it is about everyone wanting to join in on the fun when I'm (attempting) writing something short. All it needed was Haruka and the Abassador. But they'll have their turn later :D


	35. Small Steps

Replies to Anonymous Reviewers:

**A.B.:**

Well, if you didn't you certainly have now XD I'm so glad you like her! We certainly be seeing more of her in the future. Thank you very much! When I get a bit rushed I tend to miss a few things. All fixed now :D I certainly will. I'm not going to stop until its finished XD

**Zeynel:**

I'm glad you thought so :D Then you'll be glad to hear that she will be appear more in future :) Unfortunately Fukao did win - Janine didn't stand much of a chance.

xXx

AN: After a bit of debate, I decided I might as well post the short oneshots that I've written as well (mainly because I've started referring to them later on :). They'll go up in chronological order between long instalments. Those that haven't passed already, anyway .

SMALL STEPS

Light streamed into the teahouse. It was a modest establishment, located on one of the main streets in the middleclass district of the Southern Quarter. The dark wood framing the wide open widows was offset by the pale wallpaper and landscapes painted in pastels that hung on the walls. About twenty small tables filled the open space, their crisp white tablecloths and colourful flower arrangements giving the large space a cheerful air. The atmosphere was only added to by the light conversations carried out by the women sitting at the small tables, talking quietly among themselves as they enjoyed their afternoon tea.

The only jarring note was the occupants of a table set to the side of the room. In the wave of women dressed in light colours, the two men in their dark suits were a like a rocky outcrop, jarring and distinct. The ladies couldn't help but notice the intrusion and every so often curious glances would be cast at the two young men. But as their relative youth and the quiet nature of their presence became apparent, they were left alone. None of the ladies minded a having a pair of polite gentlemen share the afternoon with them.

It was uncertain whether the two men could say the same. The larger man sat on the fragile chair beneath him as if he was used to sitting on similar furniture. He looked rather relaxed as he sipped from his tea and helped himself to the plate of cakes that sat on the table. But while Doumeki looked as comfortable eating teacakes in a middleclass teashop as he did pastries in a lord's mansion, Kimihiro didn't. The lord was looking rather ill-at-ease in comparison.

It was obvious that Kimihiro was not used to such places. While he might appear composed at a casual glance, Doumeki could see that it was anything but the case. His dark eyes scanned his surroundings, darting to every loud sound or too-quick movement. The cup of tea sat untouched on the table before him as he sat poised on the edge of his seat. It was a fair cry from the usual relaxed and confident air he usually displayed and the prince was beginning to wonder why the lord was so edgy.

Doumeki reached across the table with the silver tongs provided and placed a sugar cube in the untouched cup. It made a satisfyingly large slosh that threatened to spill tea all over the saucer. Doumeki reached for another sugar cube from the bowl and made to repeat the gesture.

With a glare, Kimihiro batted away the sugar tongs with a teaspoon he had snatched up from the table. "You can't just put things in other people's tea without asking." Though he kept his voice low in order not to draw attention, the lord's displeasure was abundantly clear. The glare accompanying his words may have had something to do with it. "Add sugar to your own tea if you want it." Even as the teaspoon was held ready to ward off another attack one pale hand hovered over the open cup to prevent another addition.

Objective achieved, Doumeki laid down the tongs. "You weren't drinking it." He pointed out reasonably. "I thought you might like it sweeter."

Kimihiro's brows suddenly lowered in a scowl and Doumeki leaned back slightly in his chair in anticipation of the no doubt muted verbal outburst to follow. But just as Kimihiro's mouth opened a cheerful presence appeared at his elbow.

"Is there something wrong?" One of the teahouse waitresses had come up to the table, her bright eyes flicking over both of them in cheerful enquiry. They'd received unusually attentive service since they had stepped through the door. Doumeki thought it might have been the novelty of having two gentlemen patron the shop but it soon became clear that Kimihiro's careful courtesy had charmed the waiting staff.

Several of the ladies at nearby tables had turned their heads at the sudden movement and now made no pretence about listening in on the unfurling events. Kimihiro caught the looks and his mouth suddenly shut, his face smoothing into more composed lines as he realized that they were now the centre of attention. "No. Everything is fine, thank you." The faint colour rising in his cheeks made it clear that he was quite embarrassed by the attention.

The girl gave another dazzling smile, apparently charmed by the lord's manner. "Just call if you want anything." With one last look at the both of them, she swept off in a flurry of skirts to another table near the shop windows.

Doumeki lifted a small tea cake from the plate set in front of him and popped it into his mouth. Kimihiro had demurred when the cakes had been set down on the table, leaving them to the prince's greater appetite. He seemed to have temporarily given up on instilling basic table manners into his companion. Now, reminded of that they were in public, he only gave Doumeki a disapproving blue glance before lifting his teacup. Before it could reach his lips, however, he paused, obviously remembering Doumeki's contribution to the brew. He eyed the contents narrowly, obviously debating whether to try the over-sweetened tea.

The jingle of the bell at the door had them both looking up, Kimihiro setting his cup back on its saucer. A young woman stood in the doorway, wearing a plain dress that could have belonged to any woman of the working classes and her brown hair tied up in a simple bun. A parcel wrapped in brown paper was clutched tightly in her hands as her eyes slowly scanned over the tables that filled the teashop floor. She immediately spotted Kimihiro and Doumeki. They were only men in the shop, making them hard to miss. Clutching the package tighter to her chest, she made her way over to the table.

Both men rose when she approached and sank back into their seats as she sat down. Her eyes passed over them both in a muted stare as she resettled the skirts of her dress around her legs. Close up she appeared even more plain, possessing a pale face set with regular features and somewhat small eyes.

"Would you like some tea?" Kimihiro had reverted to his usually courteous manner, refusing to look at the parcel which had been set down on the immaculate white tablecloth. But Doumeki had noticed the slight sheen of sweat that appeared on his brow, the minute narrowing of his right eye.

"No." It was a quiet nearly emotionless voice. A thin hand slid the package across the table towards Kimihiro. "Her ladyship said to give you this."

Kimihiro leaned back slightly in his chair, putting some distance between himself and the package sitting before him. His mouth had tightened, turning his lips to a shade that was that was close to his pale white of his face. "Did the lady-"

The woman shook her head. "Milady said that you can keep it. She doesn't want it anymore." She suddenly rose, like a doll jerked up on its strings. Before the two men could rise, she had turned and was walking away from the table. She slowly wove between the tables that separated her from the door, oblivious of the gazes that turned towards her, and let herself out.

Kimihiro watched her departure with a worried expression. His darkened eyes stayed on the woman as she stepped out onto the crowd and disappeared into the flow of people walking along the street.

Doumeki waited for Kimihiro to turn back but the moment stretched out into several as Kimihiro continued to stare out the window. It was only when Doumeki made a move to reach for the tongs once more that the lord's dark gaze flashed to the prince. His glare was lacking in heat, however, and it dissolved entirely as his eyes fell on the harmless-looking brown package left on the table.

The prince followed his gaze. It was a small parcel, perhaps five by thirty centimetres. The way the brown paper was wrapped suggested that it contained something solid - the paper was firm and unmarred by the fingers that had gripped it so tightly. It looked mundane but Doumeki had learnt that nothing was what it appeared when Kimihiro was concerned.

Kimihiro noticed Doumeki's glance. "It's a fan." He took a sip of tea, apparently having forgotten Doumeki's recent addition. "The lady purchased it from Yuuko." His gaze darkened. "But apparently she doesn't need it anymore."

Doumeki's eyes returned to the package trying to imagine what a fan could be used for and why it was now being returned. From Kimihiro's reaction it couldn't be anything good. "And the servant woman?"

Kimihiro set down the teacup, suddenly looking tired. "I suspect she was exposed to the fan more times than she should have been." His eyes settled on the package. "It absorbs strong emotions. But if used too often it can take away more than that." He suddenly turned to Doumeki. "Are you finished?"

Doumeki nodded and after a slight hesitation, Kimihiro picked up the package and slid it into the pocket of his jacket. He stood, hand resting idly on the back of his chair as Doumeki did the same. He hesitated for a moment before speaking. "It's late." It might have been a casual observation if not for the following words. "Will you be staying for dinner?"

Caught in the act of tucking his chair back under the table, Doumeki paused. He looked over at the lord only to find Kimihiro staring determinedly down at the tablecloth. But from the nervous way his fingers were moving on the chair back, it was clear that he was waiting for an answer. Doumeki thought about it for a second. "What's for dessert?"

Kimihiro glared at him and left to pay at the counter. Doumeki finished tucking in his chair, letting a smile cross his lips. It was the first time that Kimihiro had actually invited him to dinner. It was a small step but a step nonetheless.

xXx

I hope you liked this light little piece. Tainted Land will be up in a few days.


	36. Tainted Land I

**ObessedReader:**

With Doumeki and Watanuki it's always weird XD LOL. It had been that long. Sorry about that. Well, there's always that future...though Lord Kimihiro doesn't ever really explode like canon!Watanuki does. Lucky you. Here you are :D

**A.B.:**

I'm glad you enjoyed it :D It's set a day or so after Loosed Arrow (I'm putting everything up in chronological order here - if you want to peek into the past and future you'll have to run over to my LJ for that XD. Start here and you'll see what I mean: ) How sad. You're not a fan of sugar D: Thanks! I'm glad you think so XD Hmm. How about now? XD

**Skies:**

Because they're just adorable in general? XD Just the thought is lovely. Thank you! And I do mean that - you are in part responsible for it :D

**squeefan:**

LOL. They're small in someways but monumental in others :D I'm glad that you're enjoying the fun :D Thank you! Considering the wonderful works here, that's a high compliment :D

**Rokuri:**

Don't worry about it - the main thing is that you're enjoying yourself :) Having lots of Watanukis and Doumekis is addictive XD But I'm particularly happy to hear you're enjoying the Lord & Prince AU. I'm rather fond of them. Thank you! I'm glad you like it :D It's bit of both - I borrow some things (and I usually mention when) but the rest is mostly invention XD Oh, thank you! I'm glad I haven't been going on. I try not to only say enough so that the situation is clear but sometimes I get curious and go off a bit XD It was brave of you take the plunge in that respect. I try not to see how long it is - the length of it frightens me sometimes XD That's Wonderful! I hope that I do keep your interest - I certainly do have a lot of things for both of them to get through :)

If you were here I would hug you. I absolutely LOVE it! Thank you so much! And it must be shared! I'll put in a link with my next post if you don't mind? I hope you enjoy them :D

xXx

AN: I said it would be a few days :D

Entwining Fates:

Tainted Land

I

Rain fell softly, a continuous drizzle that had started during the night and continued through the morning. Aside from the occasional turning of pages, it was the only sound in the small building which lay nestled within the central enclosure of the Southern Ward.

Doumeki set the report he was reading onto the low table before him and let his gaze slide out to the garden. The sliding doors leading to the veranda had been left open and he had an unobstructed view of the wet vegetation outside. It was still early winter and while it was cool, Doumeki preferred to have the fresh air.

He had found himself spending much of his time in the small building over the last few weeks. It housed the records of the Ward's history and official accounts of incidents that had occurred in the Southern Quarter. It wasn't uncommon for the Keeper to be found there recently. Doumeki had been chasing down information whenever he got the time.

Doumeki had started out searching for information related to the foundation of the Watanuki estates. After several days of research all he could find was a mention of how much land had been allocated to the newly-created Lord Watanuki, with a terse description of said lands. Further searching had unearthed mention of the establishment of a shrine on the estate but that was it. There was no mention or hint of the role that the line played in the warding of the city. As he scanned through the accounts, it had been increasingly apparent that the Watanuki estate was hardly mentioned at all.

He had changed tactics then and started looking at the eyewitness accounts that were incorporated into the Southern Ward's chronicles. Soon he began to notice a trend. When there was an incident that went beyond the usual supernatural occurrences that were periodic and predictable, there was inevitably mention of 'the lord' who offered assistance. It changed throughout the years, sometimes a lord, sometimes a lady, but Doumeki was certain that if he compared it to the Watanuki lineage, the dates would match with the current master of the estate.

It wasn't until the last fifty years that the Watanuki presence suddenly disappeared from the records. At that point, the accounts became more circumspect. Entries were written along the lines of 'the Keeper attended the Hawker estate' and 'a cleansing was requested at the village north of Cottsward'. The exact nature of these outings was omitted and only the Keeper and various wardens were listed as attending.

The number of accounts had more than doubled in the last ten years of Haruka's tenure as Keeper. There was an entry for nearly every day and the accounts had become correspondingly less informative. There were simply dates and locations, with no description as to what was actually occurring.

It was incredibly frustrating. Doumeki was certain that the nature of these outings were the very clues that he was looking for. After several days of fruitlessly searching for further information, Doumeki had turned his attention to what he could find on the death of the most recent Lord and Lady Watanuki.

Accessing the account of the incident had been no problem. As Keeper of the Southern Ward, he governed the wardens that were responsible for the Southern Quarter. Getting the report on an accident that had taken place within the quarter had simply been a question of requesting the report. A few hours later and he had it in his hand. Doumeki had read the report before when he had first been investigating Kimihiro. But now he was looking at it from a different perspective and he found that there was more information in the sparse report than he had first realized.

The death of Lord and Lady Watanuki had been ruled an accident. One of the wheels had been thrown and the carriage had been overturned, killing the driver and both passengers instantly. There were no more details. Only the time when the carriage had been discovered and the dates of subsequent rites for the deceased. There was no mention of how the lord and lady had died and there was no question of why they had been travelling on an overcast night, dangerous by any standards.

That was exactly what Doumeki had learned when he first read the report. But now he could see more than he had the first time. The date in particular caught his attention. The accident had occurred in the third week of spring. Around the same time when Haruka had acted so strangely that day in the garden.

Doumeki had gone back through the shrine accounts to compare the dates. There had only been one outing by the Keeper that day and there was only the time, no explanation for what had happened. Haruka had left soon after his grandson had left the Ward. And he hadn't come back until the early hours of the next day.

The location was also telling. The accident had occurred at a crossroads, a junction of roads that lead to the Watanuki estate from any number of estates that lay within the outer reaches of the Southern Quarter. The crossroads itself was located southeast of the Southern Ward. In the exact same direction that Haruka had interrupted the story he was telling his grandson to regard with such an unreadable gaze.

There was no doubt that Haruka had sensed something and gone to investigate the matter. And that would suggest that the death of the former Lord and Lady Watanuki was not the simple accident it had been labelled.

Doumeki's gaze returned to the report on the low table before him. He had read it countless times in the last few days, trying to find some clue that he had overlooked. Something that would reveal the almost tangible omission that he could tell was so important. Doumeki picked up the report and started reading over it one more time. There was something there; he just couldn't work out what it was.

There was a rattle of porcelain. Doumeki looked up to see Riku was standing with a servant out on the veranda, the other man holding a tray complete with a small tea service and several covered plates. "Your Highness." The aide gave a small bow of the head and entered the room. "Several messages have arrived."

Doumeki leaned back slightly from the table so the servant could set down his burden. He lifted the report, shifting it to his lap. Riku's eyes caught sight of the document his master had been poring over for the last few days but refrained from commenting. He knew that anything he said would be ignored if it didn't fit in with the prince's plans.

The servant down the tray and straightened. After a deep bow, he left the room, slipping out onto the veranda and disappearing from sight. Riku watched him go, his assessing gaze recalling his days as chamberlain of the royal apartments, before turning back to the prince.

The aide caught Doumeki's eyes on the bundle he held under his arm. "None from Lord Watanuki." It was said in a tone that suggested he knew that was what the Keeper had been looking forward to. "A missive from Lord Grantham." An elegant missive was placed on the table precisely beside the tray the servant had left. "Another package from Lady Hishida." A small wrapped box was set next to the missive and Doumeki gave it a sharp glance.

But Riku was still continuing. "A petition from Lord Tatsuya and his adherents." A neat plain envelope was set down. Riku was left with one more message in his grasp and gave a disapproving pause before laying it down. "Lord Woodrow sent a note to say that he would be over later in the week." 'Note' was the best word for it. It was basically a folded piece of paper that had been sealed.

Despite the proper order that Riku had indicated, Doumeki picked up Alastaire's note as he reached for one of the sandwiches on the tray.

For some reason, Alastaire's manner grew more atrocious when on paper and the note that Riku so thoroughly disapproved of was no exception. Doumeki already knew most of its contents before he had even started reading.

_Doumeki,_

_Nothing new to report. Your two wardens are tracing a dock worker at the moment but he seems to have vanished. No doubt Kurogane will drag him back before the week is out. Though in what condition is debatable._

_Not much on the social side of things, either. Harriet is snubbing me and her mother has not deigned to invite me to the upcoming social gala. I feel that my criticism of the latest fashion has worked against me. I get the distinct impression that the ladies are avoiding me. _

_Though I hear you're faring better, you sly dog._

_Clear your schedule for Friday morning. I'll be coming over for breakfast._

_Alastaire._

Doumeki refolded the note and took a firm bite out of his sandwich. Only the ironic twitting was missing. But no doubt he would get his fill of that later on in the week.

He continued to work backwards, ignoring Riku's resigned expression, and picked up the petition. He cracked the seal with his thumb and opened the letter with one hand as he snagged another sandwich.

It was a request for the renewal of the annual festivals from Lord Tatsuya on behalf of his growing number of followers. Unlike Kimihiro, the lord had _chose_n to be known by his first name, distancing himself from the line that his father took regarding the modernisation of the capital. The young lord was one of the more vocal adherents to the old ways and was always sending letters. This one spoke eloquently of the need to revive the winter bon festival to reinstate it as a living tradition. He argued that the ritual had more relevance than ever with the bid for progress that was enveloping the capital. Doumeki set the appeal aside with a thoughtful frown. He'd talk to Kimihiro about it.

Doumeki's gaze fell on the parcel from Lady Hishida. He helped himself to a cup of tea and several sandwiches before he finally picked up the package. It wasn't the first. Ever since the first message had been slipped into his pocket, a steady stream of gifts had been delivered to the Southern Ward. They had been small traditional gifts at first - fruits of the season, small packages of sweets and spices. Gifts that could be offered to one's liege without undue comment. But the gifts had slowly changed, taking on a more personal message. Doumeki had accepted them so as not to give offence but he was aware that the time would come when he would have to start returning them. He had no intention of entering into the sort of connection that Lady Hishida offered.

He unwrapped the package. There was a small box inside, a small folded piece of paper tucked into its intricate ties. Doumeki slid it loose and opened it.

_Your Highness,_

_I hope this small token of my high esteem for you finds your favour._

_Takako._

Doumeki set the card aside and started on the ties of the box. They unravelled after a few tugs and Doumeki lifted the lid. Silver winked in the dim light. An elegant letter opener sat on a bed of dark blue velvet. The razor-sharp steel blade was fixed in a handle of silver that was traced with stalks of bamboo in low relief. It was an expensive gift but one that was still formal in character.

Doumeki turned to Riku, who had been standing to the side, watching and waiting for his master's replies. He held out the box to the aide. "Put it with the others and send the usual message."

Riku accepted the box with a nod. He had been composing a number of replies that were couched in polite refusal. They had all been ignored so far.

Doumeki finally reached for the missive from Lord Grantham. He scanned the contents, expression growing graver the more he read. Finally he folded the missive and got to his feet, the half finished plates set before him forgotten. "Call for the carriage. I'll be going out."

Riku grasped the situation immediately. He bowed and strode quickly out of the room to make arrangements.

Doumeki paused only long enough to gather up the missives and the report before heading to his apartments. It was possible he might get some answers from Kimihiro himself.

xXx

"My lord." There was a touch at his shoulder.

Kimihiro blinked the long sombre face in front of him into focus. "Hikideshi?" He pulled himself upright and realized that he was sitting in his favourite armchair in the study. The silver watch in his pocket was digging into his side, a reassuring discomfort. He'd fallen asleep again.

When he'd agreed to Doumeki's demand that he wouldn't leave the estate unless the prince accompanied him, Kimihiro had thought his ability to deal with problems would decrease with his freedom. But in fact it had been quite the opposite. Ironically Doumeki's presence gave him more mobility than he had enjoyed previously. With the warding abilities of the Keeper at his side, Kimihiro had judged it time to deal with matters that he otherwise would have foregone. Doumeki also brought more problems to his door and Kimihiro found himself leaving the estate several times a week to attend to various curses and taints that were brought to his notice. With the clients that still came to see him, Kimihiro found that he was dealing with more matters than he ever had since opening the doors of his mansion.

As a result he had developed the embarrassing habit of dozing off when he had a few moments of quiet.

Setting his hands on the arms of the chair, he pulled himself more firmly upright and attempted to look more alert. "What time is it?"

Hikideshi straightened, dark eyes fixed on his lord's face. "Just after midday."

Midday.

There had been the Clydesdale that had been brought to the estate just before dawn. The farmer had started travelling with the lame working horse late the night before and covered almost five miles by moonlight to reach the estate in the dawning light.

Faced with such faith in his abilities, Kimihiro had given the situation his full attention and closely examined the unhealed wound that was the cause. As a result he found himself standing out on the gravel drive before sunrise at the start of winter in the midst of a steady shower. Wrapped up in a thick coat that cut the worst of the drizzle and his breath steaming in the freezing air, Kimihiro had examined the huge foot the mare obligingly lifted.

What he had found had been disturbing.

The wound was half-obscured by the thick feathers that hung in shaggy fall over the hoof yet Kimihiro could feel the unnatural swelling of the canon under his fingers and the heat of inflammation. He had gently run his fingers over the long cuts, the farmer murmuring comfortingly as he held onto the cheek-strap of the mare's halter and ran a rough hand in calming strokes down her neck. Finally, after having seen all he had to, Kimihiro had released his hold on the leg and the mare lowered it gingerly, touching the tip of her hoof to ground to rest it without putting any weight on it.

As the farmer had suspected, the wound was not merely physical.

After he had touched them, thick black lines had seeped from the wounds, snaking out to seek his fingers. They were sluggish enough that he could avoid them but Kimihiro could see that they were deeply rooted in the cuts. Whether they had arrived at the moment the cuts were made or found their way there later, he was unsure. What was certain, though, was that they had to be removed or the wounds would never heal. They were infected by a type of elemental parasite. Suzumebachi, the supernatural equivalent of wasps. Fragments of the original spirit would be laid into open wounds and then they would slowly grow, consuming their host until they had matured, starting the cycle anew. If they were left unattended, the mare would further weaken and die.

Kimihiro straightened and walked towards the farmer, trailing a hand along the mare's rain-dampened side. "When did you notice it?"

The farmer, Hayato by name, patted the mare's neck. "A few days ago. We were taking out the feed and I noticed she was resting her leg." He nodded back towards the foot the mare was resting, only the tip of the hoof touching ground. "She usually rests the left rather than the right. Nothing had been wrong the day before so it must have happened overnight." The mare nudged him, water dripping down the fan of her forelocks, and he gave her another pat. "We treated the cuts but when it wouldn't heal, I suspected that there was something more."

"And so you came to see me." Kimihiro was sometimes surprised by the people had heard about him. Most of them were labourers, farmers and servants who didn't share the position of their landholders and lords. But most didn't travel so far to see him.

Hayato nodded. "She's a good girl. Steady and a hard worker. I figured that if anyone could help her, you could." He shook his head. "Not many of the wardens are doing their jobs anymore."

That comment caught Kimihiro's attention. "What do you mean?"

Hayato laughed suddenly, causing the mare to toss her head. "Well, I can't see any of them standing in the rain to examine a lame horse. Most of the people who go to them get turned away or find that they don't have help to give." He shook his head. "It's all this chasing after new ideas. They forget what's important." His eyes met the lord's. "One day they're going to turn around and find that everything they've dismissed as outmoded was the only thing that kept them safe. I might not be in the thick of things but I can see when the tide is changing."

Kimihiro had been stroking a hand down the mare's powerful neck but now his hand came to a rest, palm flat against Miho's solidly muscled shoulder. "The tide?"

The farmer smiled wryly at the lord's startled look. "That's what my grandfather used to call it. When the second world gets restless and starts to leak across." A wry look. "With the end of the festivals, it looks like we're headed to for a tsunami."

It seemed like he wasn't the only one who had noticed the changes.

Kimihiro explained what he would have to do and cautioned the man of what to expect. He then let the golden dragon curled around his neck leap down to the ground. Aside from the half circle of silver poles he had erected around them to ward of the spirits on the grounds, Kimihiro had also summoned Ryuu for protection. Hayato had barely blinked at the dragon's appearance and aside from the occasional glance, ignored the presence of the small construct. Ryuu had been watching the spirits loose within the estate boundary with a predatory gaze but now it quickly ran across the gravel and pulled itself up the feathers of the mare's wounded leg. The black slime immediately oozed forth and the construct got down to the task of drawing the parasite out of the wound.

A few minutes later a shivering, sweat-lathered horse was standing splay-legged, eyes rolling. Hayato had taken a firm grip on the halter and held her head down against his shoulder, speaking softly to calm the spooked horse. "So what's the price?" He asked when the mare had quietened.

Kimihiro felt a small smile crease his lips. "Information is enough. Send word to me when you sense any more changes in the tide."

Hayato nodded. "That I will."

He had taken a horse loaned by Kimihiro's tenants and the mare had been left until she recovered. When the wound was healed, Hayato would return with the horse he had borrowed and take Miho home.

It had only taken about an hour at most but Kimihiro, chilled by the rain and tired from the early wake up call retreated inside to have a bath and change. He had then adjourned to the study, intending to review some correspondence, and ended up falling asleep.

He now looked at Hikideshi with some concern. "Is something wrong?" The butler would never have woken him unless there was something that immediately needed his attention.

Hikideshi's eyes slid to the study door. "His Highness is here."

Kimihiro shot upright, twisting to see the door. It was closed and he sent a questioning glance at the butler.

"His Highness is in the dinning room." Hikideshi paused for a moment. "Waiting for you to join him for lunch."

Kimihiro felt a spark of anger. As if the mansion was his own. He should have known. Doumeki had the worst timing ever.

xXx

LOL. So he does :D

And as to the missing piece of that report - you already know what it is. Or rather who :D


	37. Tainted Land II

Entwining Fates:

Tainted Land

II

Kimihiro was not happy when he entered the dinning room. It was made clear by the glare he shot his unexpected guest if one was not sharp enough to notice his tight lips and clenched hands. Doumeki, who had made watching Kimihiro his favourite pastime, spotted the signs straight away. He also didn't fail to miss the delightful way some of the lord's hair was sticking up on the right side of his head. Doumeki couldn't help letting his lips quirk when the wayward strands started waving as the lord stalked over to the table.

"A normal person would send word that they were going to visit," Kimihiro observed as he pulled out a chair.

Doumeki considered pointing out that Kimihiro was hardly a normal person, either, but wisely kept silent. Instead he helped himself to one of the small cakes that were laid out on the serving platter sitting on the table. "Do you want one?" It was best to ignore any Kimihiro's sharp comments. Whatever he said in reply always seemed to be wrong.

The lord's open mouth shut with an audible snap. The hair sticking out from the side of his head started trembling.

Doumeki found himself fascinated by the waving strands. "They're not as good as the pastries-"

The trembling increased. The black spikes waving up and down in fast little arcs.

He couldn't help it. He decided to push a little more. He bit into one and spoke through the mass in his mouth. "-they're a bit too sweet."

It was slightly garbled but it was certain that Kimihiro had made out the words. His right eye twitched and just by looking his arms, Doumeki could tell that Kimihiro's hands were clenching under the table. "I can't make certain there are pastries for your visits when you turn up uninvited."

Curiously phrased. As if Kimihiro had something personally to do with the pastries' appearances. Doumeki had simply thought they had been made by someone off the premises. But now he had a sneaking suspicion that was not the case...

But while he had been exploring the possibilities, Kimihiro had managed to calm himself down. "So why have you come?"

Doumeki stared at him. It couldn't be. Surely not.

But Doumeki hadn't seen anyone in the mansion except Kimihiro and Hikideshi. And Kimihiro wasn't the typical nobleman. Despite his refined manners in public, he didn't seem to realize that his private manners were more bizarre than Doumeki's. No proper lord would repeatedly greet their guests in a robe.

Not that Doumeki was going to tell Kimihiro that. He'd come to enjoy the sight. He wasn't going to say anything that might stop the lord from wearing them in front of him.

But the possibility that the lord made pastries in his spare time...it would explain they had been absent from the table recently. He tried to imagine Kimihiro in a kitchen.

"What?" He must have been wearing a strange look on his face because Kimihiro was watching him warily, defensive anger rising in his eyes.

Doumeki leaned forward and suddenly raked a hand through the lord's hair, combing the unruly strands back into proper order. Kimihiro blinked, too surprised to stop him, and Doumeki found that he was inclined to continue even though he had achieved his objective. He pulled away.

Kimihiro simply stared for a moment then raised a hand to his hair. "What on earth were you doing?" He sounded puzzled but there was an edge of anger inevitably following behind.

Doumeki reached for a sandwich to distract himself from the sensation of soft hair that he could still feel on his fingers. He took a bite. "Your hair was sticking up."

Kimihiro's eyes widened, colour flooding his cheeks as he patted the side of his head with searching fingers.

It was amusing but Doumeki reluctantly decided not to dwell on it. "I received a letter from Lord Grantham this morning."

Kimihiro was still checking to see if his hair was flat. But his hands fell when he caught Doumeki's amused gaze. "And?" He reached for the cup of tea that sat steaming on the table.

Doumeki finished off the small sandwich and reached for another. "He's been having a problem with one of his horses."

xXx

It seemed to be his day for horses.

"Lord Grantham breeds race horses." The lord's breeding stock had been famous even when Kimihiro had still been acceptable in society. "I assume one of his studs is the problem?" It seemed to be the only thing that could cause the man to consult with the Keeper.

Doumeki reached for another sandwich. Kimihiro had lost count. They were small triangles and Doumeki had been eating a lot of them. He picked up the silver tongs that Doumeki was ignoring and helped himself to several sandwiches before Doumeki finished them off. It was a large platter - he was entertaining Doumeki, after all – but with the way Doumeki was eating them they wouldn't last for long. He'd already summoned Ryuu once this morning and with Doumeki's presence it was likely he would need to again. If he didn't eat anything he'd be useless.

"Not a stud." Doumeki was peering at the filling of his latest sandwich. It must have passed muster because it soon disappeared into his mouth. "One of the colts to come out of his new breeding line."

Kimihiro took one of the sandwiches from his plate and took a small bite. "Did he say what the problem was?"

"No." Another sandwich.

Kimihiro thought about it, his own half-eaten sandwich forgotten. Lord Grantham's estate wasn't far from his own lands but he hadn't heard of any troubles that were linked to the estate. His brow furrowed. It had been uncommonly quiet, actually. Thanks to his tenants, Kimihiro often received a fair bit of information on the other estates that lay within the Southern Quarter. Even if it was only gossip passed around by the servants, it was useful. They often knew what was really happening when society was unaware. But he hadn't heard anything about Lord Grantham or his lands. The only thing that had come close was Hayato. The farmer was a tenant on the Laitt estate further down the river.

Kimihiro absently tapped a finger on the table. It was possible that the two events were unrelated. But problems with two horses, possibly both with a supernatural cause? Someone else would have claimed that it was coincidence. But Kimihiro knew better. It was hitsuzen.

He took another bite out of his sandwich. "We'll go after lunch." After he got changed. It wasn't that that what he was wearing wasn't suitable. When Doumeki took him out to see various members of the nobility, he tended to dress down. So far no one had seemed to recognize him. He was introduced as a practitioner and no one questioned his presence. All their attention was focused on the prince and he was content to leave it that way.

Doumeki nodded, mouth full and reaching for another sandwich. There were only three left but no doubt they would be gone soon.

Kimihiro took another bite. The prince was absolutely hopeless. He'd have to ask Hikideshi for another tray.

xXx

Half an hour later Kimihiro had retreated to his bedroom. He'd had to resort to more than another plate of sandwiches to satisfy Doumeki's hunger. In the end he'd instructed Hikideshi to get whatever Doumeki requested and went to go change. He only hoped the larder wasn't emptied by the time he returned.

Kimihiro examined the clothes that had been laid out on the bed. Plain black trousers, white shirt and a subdued blue and black vest. The vest was a bit extravagant for his purposes, true, but the black jacket with its tasteful metallic grey embroidery suited perfectly. The looping lines and small lined stars were a replica of the wards that ran along the walls. The perfect display for a practitioner.

It also had the added bonus of being cut to hide the silver snail picks that would lie hidden up its sleeves. After raising the secondary boundary ward, Kimihiro had taken to carrying them everywhere. In the absence of his warded cane, which was distinctively linked with nobility if not Lord Kimihiro, they were a protection that he felt he needed close at hand. After what had breached the wards, he was taking every precaution that he could.

The fingers of his right hand lifted to his left wrist. Through the sleeve of his shirt he could feel the outline of the thin links of the golden bracelet. He had taken to wearing it when he ventured out. Not only to prevent losing it but because the feel of the cool links against his skin was comforting. Just like the weight of the silver timepiece in his pocket.

Kimihiro sighed and leaned forward to pick up the shirt. Hopefully the matter with Lord Grantham's colt would be easily remedied and he could get back to what he had meant to finish that morning.

He glanced over at the dresser. A letter, the creamy vellum a marked contrasted to the dark wood it rested on, sat on the polished surface. It was the latest in a string of letters that he had been receiving in the wake of the auction.

Lady Dexter had indeed been serious when she had promised to write to Lady Minami. When other avenues had failed, the determined lady had resorted to sending a letter to Lord Watanuki, Lady Minami's reclusive and undesirable relative. Kimihiro had been quite surprised to receive it. He had thought that the lady would have given up once the trail led to his door but he had underestimated her. Lady Dexter had actually come in person to deliver the letter to his mansion. It was only by chance that he had been out with Doumeki and missed her.

That Lady Dexter had ventured to his estates said something for her force of will. He had no visitors who called upon him for anything other than the services he offered. None except for Doumeki who had apparently become addicted to his pastries and couldn't help himself. But like Doumeki, the lady didn't seem to care about adhering to public opinion. She had ventured into the mansion of a man who was labelled social pariah and hand-delivered a letter - all in the slim hope that word could be passed on to a woman she had only met once and had never heard a word from.

Perhaps most interesting of all was the fact that Hikideshi had accepted the missive with reassurances that Lady Minami would indeed receive it.

Kimihiro wasn't quite sure why Hikideshi had come to that decision. Part of it he knew, must have been due to the butler's infallible honesty. It was assured that the letter would be received by Lady Minami, so yes Hikideshi had taken it. The decision was probably also in part reasoning that if Lady Dexter had been this determined, then it was wiser to end her search now rather than letting her continue. But Kimihiro had the nagging suspicion that Hikideshi had other reasons for his actions.

Whatever the reasoning behind the acceptance of the first letter, Kimihiro found himself the recipient of a barrage of letters. Two or three a week. More, if something interesting was happening in society. Lady Dexter, it appeared, was a faithful correspondent. Even without reply she wrote, imparting the latest gossip, observations of the season's effect on her garden and commentary on some of the more 'intelligent' fashions to grace the capital. And not least of all, the activities of Her Majesty's oldest son, Prince Doumeki.

Kimihiro's lips twitched. As a result he had ended up learning more of Doumeki's movements than he had ever wanted to.

But despite the airy narrations, there were some shrewd observations about events unfolding in the capital. Kimihiro found that he was receiving information that he didn't get from his other noble correspondents. They were members of the other lines which supported the cardinal Wards and gossip was not the meat of their missives. It tended to run to the supernatural occurrences that were breaking out in their Quarters rather than any political information. Lady Dexter now supplied him with information he had been lacking.

Faced with the effort that the lady was making and her unknowing aid, Kimihiro had done what Hikideshi had blandly suggested and replied. It had started with a simple thank you for the letters and assurances that they had been passed along to his (distant) cousin who was unable to reply. To Kimihiro's surprise, the next letter to Lady Minami had been accompanied by one addressed to himself. It had started out with a courteous reply to his missive which, over the weeks, had evolved into a series of letters similar to what Lady Minami was receiving. Except, with his replies, an actual conversation had sprung up between them. He didn't need to say much to keep the flow going, but Kimihiro found that the time he spent on each letter was getting longer and longer. He was enjoying it.

Kimihiro's glance moved from the letter back to the clothes laid out on the bed, unaware of the smile that crossed his lips. He'd write a response tonight. After he got back with Doumeki.

xXx

Doumeki took a thoughtful sip of tea as Hikideshi set another tray on the table. It was a smaller one than had been brought out previously. Unlike his master, Hikideshi seemed to understand even Doumeki couldn't devour the vast quantities of food that Kimihiro had ordered. Of course he could always find some room for some pastries if they were on offer.

Doumeki set down the teacup and set his eyes firmly on the butler who noticed his gaze and remained standing next to the table. "Your Highness?" It was the usual polite enquiry, giving away nothing but quiet attention.

Doumeki was silent a moment before carefully phrasing his question. "You've served the Watanuki line for a long time."

A look of what could have been amusement flashed through the butler's solemn dark eyes. "Yes, Your Highness."

Doumeki's suspicions solidified. It seemed that the glimpse he had been allowed to see of the painting had been deliberate. "What do you know of the first Lord Watanuki?"

A curious stillness overtook the other man. "Lord Watanuki was a remarkable man. He was given his title from His Majesty, a reward for his loyal service." A distant look came into his eyes. "He was much like His Lordship."

Doumeki watched the butler's face closely. It was the first time that he had seen so much emotion in the other man. "In what way?"

Hikideshi closed up. It was as if a door had been closed, softly but firmly. A polite refusal but an exclusion nonetheless. The familiar distant politeness returned to the butler's black eyes. "It is not my place to say."

And he left the room, leaving Doumeki with the feeling that he had just let something important slip through his hands.

xXx

They took Doumeki's carriage. By unspoken agreement they had come to the decision that the prince's carriage was to be used for cases that requested aid of the Keeper and the ornate Watanuki carriage for Kimihiro's business.

Doumeki watched Kimihiro as he sat across from him. The lord was a lot more at ease now compared to the first time he had ridden in the carriage but he still had a tendency to shift nervously and dart his gaze out the windows. Putting it down to the uneasiness that lingered after recent events, Doumeki ignored it and tried to distract the lord with conversation.

It was unfortunately too early for other diversions.

"Have you met Lord Grantham before?"

Kimihiro blinked, eyes rising from his hands. There was a slight pause as the lord processed what had been said. "No." He frowned slightly. "We moved in different circles."

Doumeki's mouth twitched. He could easily see that. It was hard to imagine who the lord had associated with. Kimihiro didn't strike him as the type which would fit in well at court. He wouldn't have the patience to deal with all the snipping and political manoeuvring.

"But I did hear of him." Kimihiro's voice was thoughtful. "It was hard not to after the Queen's Cup. His mare was slated for long odds and the win caught everyone by surprise."

There had been several times that Lord Grantham's horses had won the prestigious race. But Doumeki gathered that Kimihiro was referring to the first win eight years ago. It had been the only one to occur before the lord's voluntary exile from society.

"There were a lot of rumours floating around at the time." Kimihiro's voice was somewhat distant. "I remember-" He cut off his words and suddenly stared out the window.

Doumeki knew what had caught his attention but turned to follow his gaze. They were nearing the gates. Every time they passed through them, Kimihiro would look at the broken unicorn as it moved through the frame of the window.

It still stood guardian with its broken face. It would have to remain so until its replacement was ready. Even damaged, it still held a portion of the boundary - to remove it without exchanging it would only weaken the wards more.

The wait was a result of the complexities involved in creating a guardian statue. Not many were made these days and most of those were destined for shrines where tradition demanded they were created in the exact same way they had always been. Only a few were made to guard personal estates. The expense for a genuine pair of guardian statues was immense and few people were willing to pay for such relics of the past.

Traditional preparations, depending on the purpose of the statue, could take as long as several months or even several years to be completed. First the form of the statue had to be selected. Each of beasts that were chosen as guardians served a different purpose. The Komainu, the twin dogs A and Un, were always used to guard the sacred precincts of shrines (1). Lions and dragons were usually selected to ward private estates, each carved in a style that was particular to the lands that they were set to protect. The use of unicorns, however, was a rarity. The unicorn was the ultimate symbol of purity; a protection not only against spirits but evil in all forms.

The length of time for carving the guardians fluctuated depending on how powerful the wards were to which they would be linked. After the selection of most propitious stone, several purification rites would be carried out; for the tools, the workers and the stone block itself. The carving itself was completed in several stages, work carried out only at certain times during the calendar that were considered good fortune. And depending on the level of warding, a warden would have to be called in regularly to ensure that the guardian was made to the right specifications.

In the case of the unicorn that would grace the gate, the preparation time was extended. While it was only one of a pair, the sheer size of the statue and the elaborate nature of the boundary wards meant that the carving would take longer, purification rites being performed at every step. Normally it would have taken years for a replacement to be made for the gateway but Doumeki had used his position as Keeper to make the project a priority. Spring was the earliest that it would be ready. Until then, the damaged guardian would have to suffice.

The broken statue slid into view through the window, revealing the addition which had been made to the damaged guardian. A garland of interwoven ribbons strung with small silver bells had been placed around its neck. It had appeared the day after they had resurrected the original boundary ward and Doumeki recognized it as a temporary ward to deter evil spirits. It was a rudimentary construction at best but the sight of it seemed to ease the uneasiness that had risen in Kimihiro since the guardian statue had been damaged.

Doumeki glanced aside to see the slight smile on Kimihiro's face as he stared out at the warding wreath. It reminded him of the time when the young tenant had warded off the crow that had perched on the same statute long ago. He wondered if it was the same man who had left the wreath.

The carriage jolted over the metal bar set through the road across the gateway and the damaged guardian passed out of sight. Kimihiro glanced once more out the window then determinedly turned away. "Hopefully Lord Grantham's problem will easily resolved."

xXx

1) The same as those that are used for Shinto shrines today.

xXx


	38. Tainted Land III

Entwining Fates:

Tainted Land

III

Lord Grantham was a wealthy man and his estate reflected that fact. As the carriage slowed at the boundary of the estate Kimihiro was given a full view of the impressive gateway that had been constructed. There were no guardian statues - Lord Grantham was reputed to be a man of progress and apparently took pride in that fact - but the gate and boundary wall was enough to shout the wealth and power of the Grantham line.

A thick brick wall surrounded the estate. It terminated into two peristals that stood either side of the entrance, great towering pillars, topped with ornate lanterns, from which the hung the heavy matching gates. The large wrought-iron gates sported impressive matching iron plates depicting two running horses, powerful muscles bunched as they ran, mane and tails streaming out behind them. There was no doubt what had brought the Grantham line its current fortune.

It also appeared that Lord Grantham had eschewed the old ways. There were no guardian statues and no warding lines marked the walls. With the lack of protections, Kimihiro was surprised he didn't see spirits along the drive as they rolled forward onto the grounds.

The drive led directly to the mansion. It was a colossal building in cream and white stone, a sight that would be blinding in full sunlight but was merely pale under the overcast sky. Two large wings had been added on either side of the main building, adding an extra row of five windows to either side. It was as if the house had grown sideways, laying claim to a wider slice of the horizon. A move from compact modesty to expansive arrogance.

As they drove closer, Kimihiro searched the building for any sign of the original wards. It was with a feeling of relief that he saw that while adjustments had been made to the mansion itself, the initial ward markings still remained. They had been covered over by plaster in some places and hidden under lintels and moulding but they still warded the building. At least the household was protected.

The mansion grew larger in the window, the vast stone wall looming until it filled the pane and the view became a series of lines and pieces of stone. The carriage slowed and when it finally stopped they had pulled up in front of the impressive flight of steps that led up to the mansion entrance. A man stood at the top, flanked by a number of servants. Lord Grantham had been waiting in person for his guest.

The cabin rocked as the footman jumped down from his footstep in preparation to opening the door. Doumeki suddenly glanced at Kimihiro. The lord only had time to nod and then the door was smartly opened. Doumeki stood and gracefully stepped out, descending smoothly to the step and then the ground with barely a hitch in movement. Kimihiro waited for him to clear the doorway and followed.

After the dark confines of the carriage, even the dim sunlight was nearly blinding. Kimihiro found himself squinting against the sudden stabbing light even as he instinctively moved towards Doumeki after leaving the warded confines of the prince's carriage. The movement caught the attention of the lord, who was descending the steps to greet his guest. He paused slightly, eyes flicking sideways to take in the unexpected addition, before continuing his descent to greet them.

Lord Grantham was a lean man with an air of active restlessness. His steps as he descended the stairs were quick and sharp as if he was exerting his full energy with every movement. He had a narrow face with curiously large eyes that gave him a somewhat naive expression. It was at odds with the rest of his body and Kimihiro started to wonder whether the man was really the model of the court's throng he was reputed to be. He had replaced the boundary wall yet still kept the wards on the original section of the mansion. Lord Grantham seemed a mass of contradictions.

"Your Highness." The lord gave a deeper bow than was strictly necessary. The action, coupled with the royal address instead of the Keeper's traditional title told Kimihiro that Lord Grantham's situation must have been more dire than he had thought. The lord was taking no chances of giving offence to his visitor.

Lord Grantham straightened, his eyes locked earnestly on the prince. "I am honoured to receive your presence."

Doumeki nodded, accepting the pleasantries but giving none in return, and Kimihiro had to restrain a twitch. It was always the same. Doumeki would simply nod, sometimes saying a few words. It was as if he had never learnt the polite conventions that were the mainstay of polite society. Kimihiro had a fleeting feeling of pity for his tutors. No doubt they had been at wit's end trying to mould such lack-lustre clay into a figure of royal grace and courtly wit.

Despite his exasperation, for some inexplicable reason the thought cheered him. He couldn't imagine Doumeki acting in the way the way that his peers did. He wouldn't have been Doumeki anymore.

Not that he couldn't do with a bit of improvement. Kimihiro still had hopes that he could teach Doumeki some civility.

There was a slight awkward pause as the lord processed the fact that the prince wasn't going to say anything. Inferring that the pleasantries were over, Lord Grantham let his gaze wander to Kimihiro. "And your companion-?" It was clear that he expected some sort of introduction. His brow was furrowed somewhat as he took in the way Kimihiro stood one step behind and to the side of the prince. It was the position a servant would take but it was clear from Kimihiro's clothes that the description did not apply.

Doumeki's gaze slid sideways to Kimihiro. "A practitioner. He often accompanies me to aid with enquiries."

"I see." The lord's eyes took in the elaborate warding embroidery even as his eyes were becoming somewhat distant. The mention of 'practitioner' had labelled the man before him and he was already disassociating himself. To associate with a Keeper was one thing but to acknowledge a lowly practitioner was clearly another.

Doumeki's eyes narrowed slightly. "You indicated that you had a problem with one of your colts."

Lord Grantham's eyes returned to the prince, his dubious companion clearly forgotten. "Yes, Your Highness. I thought it best to seek your advice." A sideways glance at Kimihiro. "I've explored other avenues with no success."

Doumeki followed his gaze then turned his attention back to Lord Grantham. "Lead the way to the stables."

Lord Grantham seemed startled at the prince's eagerness to tackle the problem. Kimihiro suspected that the lord had thought entertaining was needed before they could get down to business. Usually it _would_ have been the case. With anyone but Doumeki. Kimihiro was beginning to wonder how well the prince was known by his subjects. Most seemed surprised when they had encounters with him in his capacity as Keeper. It was as if they didn't know Doumeki at all.

But Kimihiro didn't have long to ponder on the situation. Lord Grantham, delighted to have achieved his aim was already starting towards the stables, Doumeki at his side. Kimihiro in his role as spiritual lackey, followed closely behind.

xXx

"Over the last few years, I've turned my hand to breeding a new line for use in leisurely pursuits as well as race horses." Lord Grantham words were flowing as briskly as he was walking. Quickly and full of enthusiasm. "It started out with a commission from Lord Wakai. He wanted a new stud for his hunter breeding program. I had recently acquired some new stock from Lord Durham and was embarking on some experimental crossbreeding."

Doumeki hadn't missed Kimihiro's small involuntary movement at the lord's words. He vaguely recalled something of the sort a few years back. It was before he had taken up duties at the Southern Ward but he recalled that it had created something of a stir among the commons. "New stock?"

Lord Grantham's eyes met the prince's briefly before sliding away again. "Lord Durham found that he no longer had need to carry on the breeding program of his line."

The Durham line held the Northern Ward. Any breeding lines that had been established would have been for duties connected to the Ward. They were the shimme (1), divine horses. They had often been used in certain rites and dedications that were performed throughout the capital. But with the abolishment of the annual festivals and the change of duties carried out in the Wards, it was likely that there was no longer need of the horses the Durham line had so carefully cultivated throughout the years.

Doumeki glanced back to see how Kimihiro was reacting to the news. The lord met his gaze for a brief moment, allowing Doumeki to see his discomfort at the idea before letting his face go blank once more. The prince frowned as he turned back to Lord Grantham.

"Since then," the lord continued, "I've established several promising lines from which I have been selling breeding stock. Mostly to private buyers who are seeking to improve their own lines or looking to acquire a suitable mount. Hunting has become more popular over the years and the demand for suitable horses has been increasing."

"And the colt?" They were in sight of the stables and Doumeki wanted to get to the point of contention.

Lord Grantham's steps slowed slightly. "Aurion. He's one of the latest successes in my new breeding lines. I had hoped to eventually stud him out but there have been problems." The lord frowned. "Since his birth, he's been kept at the northern extent of my lands. It was only recently when he was moved to the stables on the main estate that the trouble started."

Doumeki eyed the stables that were coming into view. The long low building was built in practical lines that were in sharp contrast with the grandiose nature of the mansion. It was clear that it had been constructed recently but had been designed to match the original construction of the mansion. "What kind of troubles?"

"Aurion's health has deteriorated and his temperament has taken a steady downturn. The physician couldn't find anything wrong with him and I started exploring other avenues. I contacted everyone who could be of help." The lord frowned. "Old trainers, fellow breeders and even practitioners - none could tell what had happened or why Aurion was getting worse."

They entered the stables. The pungent smell of loosen hay filled the air, a thick chlorophyll-laden scent that had always been linked to horses in Doumeki's mind. Stable hands moving through the structure nodded their heads to acknowledge the intrusion only to pause with widened eyes to make greater obeisance to the prince who was in their midst. Usually he wasn't readily recognized but it was clear that Lord Grantham had already warned his stable staff about the guest they were going to encounter.

Doumeki ignored them, his attention on the stalls that lined the walls. They were large, roughly four by four meters, with elaborately carved wooden partitions and iron-framed half-doors. As they walked down the aisle large heads protruded from the stalls, ears flicking and dark eyes watching the progress of the three nobles. Snorts, the odd whinny and the occasional impatient stamp echoed in the enclosed space as the stable staff went about their duties. It was a sharp contrast to the refined quiet of the mansion.

He glanced back. Kimihiro was scanning the lines of the building, dark blue eyes tracing the beams that held up the roof, the posts that separated the stalls. As with the mansion there were half-hidden warding lines scrolled across the woodwork and tiny guardians were carved into the stone. The adherence to the old ways was observed but in a subtle manner that would be hidden from eyes that were unfamiliar with the practices. T was becoming clear that the Grantham line had taken a quiet line, remaining true to their heritage but making their observances a private thing rather than drawing eyes to the matter.

Lord Grantham led the way down the aisle to the end of the stables. Here most of the stalls were empty except for a few quiet occupants that were clearly dray horses. They peered at the activity outside their stall with apparent interest, ears pricked forward. An older man in neat work clothes and serviceable boots stood at the door of one of the stalls. He looked up as the Doumeki and Lord Grantham approached, his eyes flicking over the approaching group before giving a respectful bow.

"This is Takumi, my stable master." Lord Grantham came to a halt by the door and addressed the man. "How is Aurion doing today?"

The stable master cast a glance into the stall. "The same as usual."

Doumeki followed his gaze. The stall was the same as those that they had passed. The motif on the door was a twining branch of oak leaves surmounted by a cluster of acorns but everything else was the same. The bed of wheat straw, the water bucket and manger that hung on the opposite wall and the tie rings. The occupant, however, was quite different.

The colt's appearance reflected his heritage as mainly hunter stock. The sloping shoulders, thick legs and muscular hindquarters were traits bred for speed, stamina and jumping large obstacles. But there were hints in the intelligent head with its straight face that suggested that some of the blood from the shimme lines had bred true as well.

But while it was clear that Aurion was a culmination of good breeding, his condition was not good. The colt stood in one of the corners at the back of the stall. His dark eyes were dull and his ears lay back, making his face appear thin and wasted. The colt's head was hanging down and he didn't move when the men reached his stall, seeming uninterested in the new arrivals. As Doumeki's gaze scanned over his body, he could see that his coat had lost some of its sheen and it was clear that he had lost weight.

"How long has he been like this?" Kimihiro had come up to Doumeki's side to take a look. His eyes, almost black in the dim light, were fixed on the miserable-looking horse.

Lord Grantham started. He seemed to have forgotten about Kimihiro's presence. Doumeki wasn't surprised. Whenever they left the Watanuki estate, Kimihiro tended to lapse into a silent watchful shadow. The result was that he was usually overlooked when they ventured out to deal with any request of the Southern Ward.

The stable master cast a look at his lord before answering. "Almost two weeks now." The man cast an assessing look at the practitioner.

Kimihiro ignored the glance, laying an ungloved hand in a seemingly idle gesture against the stall wall. "As soon as he was moved here or afterward?"

Lord Grantham shot a glance at the prince. It was clear that he wasn't quite certain how to deal with the fact that the practitioner seemed to the be the one carrying out the investigation here rather than the Keeper he had appealed to.

Doumeki ignored it, concentrating on watching Kimihiro's face. There didn't seem to be any adverse reaction from contact with the stall. A conclusion that was supported when Kimihiro's hand lifted from its surface once more.

Takumi's eyes were narrowed in thought. "Afterwards. He was moved here little over a month ago but he didn't start to go downhill until a week or so afterward." He cast an interested glance at the pale man, clearly interested in seeing where the line of questioning was going.

Kimihiro said nothing for a few moments then flicked a gaze to Doumeki before glancing to the stall and its unhappy occupant. Doumeki got the message at once. He turned to Lord Grantham who was examining the colt with a worried expression. "I'd like to have a closer look."

The lord's frown disappeared into a concerned look. "Of course, Your Highness. It's just that-" His eyes flicked to the stable master.

The man had been watching Kimihiro with a considering gaze. His attention was brought sharply back to his lord at that trailing sentence. "He may look quiet but Aurion usually throws a fit when anyone tries to enter the stall. Perhaps-"

"It will be fine." Doumeki cut off Takumi off before he could continue. It was clear that Kimihiro thought that close proximity to the colt was the only course of action. Doumeki was prepared to see how it would play out, but if colt showed any sign of violence, he'd be dragging Kimihiro out bodily if he had to. He wasn't going to take any chances.

xXx

As soon as Doumeki entered the stall in front of him, it became clear what problem was affecting the colt. He barely seemed to notice when the stall door was opened but the dark head rose immediately once the Keeper stepped inside the structure. The horse's head rose, the faint trailing stripe running down his face finally visible. As the dark eyes took in the new arrival, the colt's spirit flared into Kimihiro's awareness.

It burned. Silver tracery ran in an intricate net that followed the flow of muscles under the dark hide and concentrated behind the colt's eyes turning them into a pair of silver mirrors. Lord Grantham's crossing of lines had resulted in a throwback, somehow resurrecting an ancient shimme bloodline. Not only was the colt sensitive to the second world, it also had full sight like his own.

Such horses had been common in the early years of the capital's foundation. They had been bred for their role in the festivals in which processions, led by Keepers riding a horse of shimme blood, were meant to cleanse the city of evil. The horses' sensitivity to the second world was invaluable in locating incursions and they had often been used by exorcists when those gifted with warding capabilities were more common. The shimme bloodlines had been watered down in the last few centuries, though. What remained was a poor substitute for what had been. Until now.

Kimihiro's eyes slid to Doumeki. He was like a stone in a river, solid and unmoving, pale eyes fixed on the horse he confronted. For a moment man and horse stared at each other, Doumeki refraining from crowding the ill beast and the colt's ears slowly rising from their unhappy fold. The stalemate continued to stretch out as the black ears swivelled and the wide nostrils worked.

Doumeki suddenly slid a hand into the pocket of his jacket. Aurion's ears swivelled forward and he stretched out his elegantly formed head at the end of his neck, scenting the air. Finally when it became clear that the prince wasn't going to approach, the colt took a hesitant step forward. One turned into several and then colt was crunching on the peppermint it had lipped from Doumeki's palm.

Kimihiro wondered if he had brought the sweet for their visit or Doumeki simply had a supply of the things for his own use. In the light of the man's weakness for pastries, Kimihiro had a sinking suspicion that it was the latter.

Doumeki was stroking a hand down the colt's neck. He cast a glance at Kimihiro and the lord took the chance to step closer for a more thorough examination.

Aurion, who had been nosing the prince's pocket in a search for more peppermints stopped as Kimihiro approached. The large head turned towards him, lifting to scent his right eye. Warm air flared across his face for a few moments and then the colt was nudging him in chest, nearly pushing him backward. With Doumeki's warding presence inside the stall, the colt seemed to have regained his naturally high-spirited nature. Kimihiro pushed the curious head away, reaching up to pat his neck, giving him the attention he was requesting. Aurion's ears flicked at the touch, but otherwise remained still, eyes half-shut, enjoying the contact. Apparently during the last few weeks he had gotten lonely in his isolated misery. Kimihiro slid a glance to Doumeki.

Doumeki distracted Aurion with another peppermint and Kimihiro continued with his examination. One hand resting on the colt's shoulder, he looked over the horse, opening his sight another few degrees. There was nothing directly wrong with him that Kimihiro could see. But the blazing tracery running through his body was somewhat dimmed. The lord scrutinized the fading lines closely before letting his focus relax. He had never seen such a thing before but he had heard of it. It could only have been the result of some external source.

His hand slid from the colt's shoulder and he turned to see Aurion munching on another peppermint, Doumeki watching him with a quiet intent look. Kimihiro almost smiled. It appeared that the prince had taken a liking to the colt. It wasn't too surprising. In what he had seen, they were united in their liking of sweet things.

Doumeki eyes slid sideways suddenly and caught his stare. For a moment there was an indecipherable look in his pale eyes but then his expression shifted slightly into an expression of silent enquiry.

"There's nothing physically wrong with him." Kimihiro patted Aurion's shoulder, who ignored the touch except for a slight flicker of ears, still crunching on Doumeki's sweet. Kimihiro kept his voice low enough that the lord and stable master wouldn't hear. "But his shimme blood makes him sensitive to the second world. He's reacting to a disturbance. There must be something wrong with the estate."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed at that last comment but he nodded and turned back to the lord and the stable master, who were watching then from the stall door. "Lord Grantham. Do you have a shrine on the grounds?"

There was an affirmative and Kimihiro eyed Aurion as Doumeki made a request to see it. Hopefully the structure would provide some clues as to why a throwback to a shimme bloodline had reacted so strongly.

xXx

1) There is a religious custom of dedicating horses to Shinto deities in Japanese culture. Today shimme are still kept by Shinto shrines and paraded on festival days. I am taking this custom and, as usual, bending it to my own purposes.

xXx


	39. Tainted Land IV

Entwining Fates:

Tainted Land

IV

It turned out that the shrine was within walking distance.

Behind the mansion and a short walk from the stables lay the formal estate garden. It was crafted in the traditional style with carefully tended trees on green undulating slopes, highlighted with stone lanterns and small watercourses spanned by stone bridges. A gravel path wound through the landscape, carefully planned to provide a changing perspective as it traversed through the garden. The main focus was a pond that sat at its centre. Its surface was still, reflecting the overhanging branches along the water's edge and the image of the small island that sat at its centre.

The shrine was located on a hill on the other side of the pond. The large red gate sat at the base of the hill, the long red beams reflected in the water of the pond, a few ripples distorting the image. A path set with stone steps led from the gate to the hill's summit, old trees obscuring the shrine itself from sight. Kimihiro could tell by the orientation of the great house that it had been originally built to keep the shrine in view. It had only been in the last century that the trees that stood as a living screen today had been left to shield the sacred area from sight.

Doumeki was looking out across the pond with that intent guarded look he wore when something had caught his attention. His eyes slid to Kimihiro for a moment and then his attention turned to the steps leading up to the shrine. Kimihiro cast a look out on to the pond - its still waters and the calm reflection on its surface - before turning to follow Doumeki and Lord Grantham up to the shrine.

Despite Lord Grantham's apparent embrace of modernity, it was clear that he still respected the old ways. Or at least had enough pride in his land's history that he kept the estate shrine in good repair. Kimihiro could see that the shrine was well cared for even as they walked the path that lead up to the sacred precinct. The stone steps were cleared of any vegetation that otherwise would have overrun them and the grassy slope was obviously regularly tended by a gardener on the estate. The sacred gate at the bottom of the small hill had been in good condition as well. The red paint had been a smooth, uniform coat - there was no peeling or loss of colour that occurred when a shrine was no longer repaired.

The impression of careful guardianship was confirmed when they reached the top of the hill and entered the shrine grounds. A small stone wall enclosed the sacred area, encompassing a number of ancient pines and the raised area that held the shrine. Like the path to the crest of the hill, the boundary was clear of vegetation which accompanied neglect and the grounds themselves were well-tended. The lower enclosure in which they now stood held the path leading up the shrine and passed by the chozuya (1), the small pavilion that sheltered the water and bamboo ladles left out for ritual cleansing. The rest of the space was filled with lanterns and the ancient pines which looked like they had been planted when the shrine had been established.

Kimihiro lingered behind a few moments to look over the walls. They were solid, the carved lines running along their spines unbroken. He frowned at the unbroken protections and turned away to follow Doumeki and Lord Grantham to where they had stopped further up the path. They were staring at the next section of the shrine. It was ringed by a wall that shored up the raised soil, creating the platform on which the shrine sat. With just a quick look Kimihiro could see that it was as well cared for as the rest of the grounds.

A glance at Doumeki showed that the Keeper had come to the same conclusion. His eyes were tracing the wall and the buildings that were located further up on the raised area that housed the shrine. The main hall was slightly raised from the ground, a flight of five steps leading up to the suzu, the round bell hung from the thick rope of braided red and white (2). Even from this distance the colours were bright.

Lord Grantham paused just before the steps set into the gap of the wall. "The priest from the village shrine regularly comes to ensure that the shrine is in good repair." He seemed to be aware of his guests' surprise. "The line has tried to keep it in its original condition." And it was clear he kept that tradition.

The shrine itself was small. It was a single building rather than a sprawling complex that was typical of larger shrines. But the colourful paintwork on the walls and the beams that supported the roof was in perfect condition. Red walls were a uniform colour undamaged by weathering like so many of the old shrines that had been left to fall out of use. The gorgeous ward lines traced over the lintel and supporting beams were still distinct in fresh greens and blues on an echoing shadow of bright white paint. It was a beautiful structure and someone had obviously been at great pains to keep in immaculate condition.

Kimihiro glanced over at Doumeki. The Keeper was eyeing the wards as well, his sharp gold eyes taking in the unbroken lines and immaculate paintwork. He soon sensed Kimihiro's gaze, however, and his eyes slid to the side before he turned to Lord Grantham. "I'll need to inspect the shrine."

Lord Grantham had been watching the prince and he hadn't missed the glance Doumeki had sent Kimihiro. "Of course." He hesitated. "But your companion-" He trailed off clearly not quite certain how to refuse Kimihiro entrance. Only priests and wardens were traditionally allowed the inner sanctum. Lord Grantham had evidently realized that Kimihiro wasn't an ordinary practitioner and clearly wasn't sure what to say least offence be given to either party.

Kimihiro intervened before the situation could become more awkward. If he left it Doumeki they'd be standing there until nightfall before getting a polite resolution. "I'll walk the grounds if you don't mind, Lord Grantham." And check for a breach if any taint had extended this far. He trusted that Doumeki would pick up any hints of deterioration in the shrine if there were any to be seen.

"We'll be a few minutes." Doumeki's words were directed to the lord but his eyes were on Kimihiro.

Kimihiro nodded in silent acknowledgement and watched as both men started up the five steps that led to the raised area that supported the shrine. It wasn't until they had disappeared inside the shrine that he left to start his exploration of the grounds.

xXx

The shrine was simply but beautifully appointed. It had the usual three divisions: the hall where worshipers would come to pray, the offering room and the inner sanctum. But because of the shrine's size they had all been scaled down. The hall was only large enough to house a few people and probably only serviced members of the immediate family. The small space was simply but elegantly decorated with tatami mats underfoot and small elemental arrangements set on small tables housing incense sticks. A number of finely executed scroll paintings also hung on the wall.

Lord Grantham noticed his gaze on the artworks. "They were painted by my great grandfather in honour of the last refurbishment of the shrine."

Doumeki nodded, gaze turning to the mats beneath their feet. They were as if new - unworn and without the thin spots that came with long wear. They must have been replaced fairly recently. It was clear that Lord Grantham took great care of the shrine, as much as would any devout of the old ways.

He indicated that they were to move on and Lord Grantham slid open the doors that led into the offering room. It was small like the open hall but it still contained the same level of care and attention to detail that made it rival a larger shrine. A small low altar sat with the five silver vessels and their traditional offerings (3). They were fresh, another sign that the shrine was being well tended. Someone else might have suspected that it had been arranged in preparation for his visit but Doumeki had seen the care of the rest of the shrine and knew that the care for the sacred structure was something continual.

He glanced around the room, seeking out the wards. In each corner of the room, carved into the poles that supported the roof, were small but highly detailed depictions of the four elements. They were the original four representations (4) not the stylised creatures that had been adopted in recent times. Simple and ordinary representations of the four elements, not fantastic creations that embodied the desirable traits of power and strength. The warding lines were more intricate as well, with smaller images of the four symbols wound into the lines. They had been carefully painted so that the decorative images did not impinge on the integrity of the lines and it was clear that the artist had put all of his or her efforts into making the protections not only strong but beautiful as well.

Doumeki had a fleeting thought that it was a shame that Kimihiro wasn't with him. He suspected the lord would have appreciated the colourful wards that were in sharp contrast with the black on white he was familiar with. Kimihiro probably would have had some insight on the state of the shrine as well. There was nothing wrong with the structure and the warding lines that traced the supporting beams and scrolled along the walls were intact. Nor was there any of the signs that Kimihiro had taught him to look for: the leavings of pests, marring of the paintwork or strange smells. He didn't feel any of the uneasiness that he had come to link with something being wrong, either. As far as he could tell there was nothing wrong with the shrine.

"The shinden (5)." The inner sanctum was the last place to look and he didn't want to waste time. While he was being careful to check over every aspect of the shrine, Doumeki was uneasy about letting Kimihiro out of his sight for so long. He was protected on the sacred grounds but Doumeki still didn't like being separated from him too long. Kimihiro attracted trouble like a magnet.

xXx

Kimihiro walked slowly though the shrine grounds. With Doumeki focusing on the shrine, he was free to concentrate on the surrounding land. True, if there was any taint it was likely to reveal itself in the state of the shrine rather than on the sacred precinct around it. But if there was a taint, Kimihiro should be able to locate the break in the boundary in order to determine where the incursion had originated.

From the way that Aurion had been acting there were only two possibilities. That the there had been a decline in the shrine that held the land's balance steady or that some malevolent spirit had somehow gained access to the estate.

Kimihiro grimaced. Neither prospect was appealing.

But the cause had to be nearby. Aurion's decline hadn't occurred until he had been moved to the stables which suggested that the problem was a localized one. Either a disturbance had recently come into the area or it was a stationary taint that had already been present. That the colt hadn't been attacked suggested it was the latter. If any spirit had successfully slipped on to the estate it would have sensed the shimme in the area and immediately sought to destroy it. Shimme were incredibly vulnerable to inhabitants of the second world and most supernatural entities were aware of it. Yet there was no sign of that - the stable wards had been intact.

Which logically left the shrine.

Kimihiro looked around at the pines and stone lanterns that filled the shrine grounds. Glimpses of the pond were visible below through the greenery. Flashes of pale blue between the branches of the trees, reflections of the sky caught and held in the water. Kimihiro stepped forward, trying to get a better view through the waving branches.

The shifting wind was a constant force at the top of the hill where in the garden it had been blocked by carefully planted windbreaks. It now shifted, no longer blocked by the shrine, to strike against him, plastering his coat against his legs and sending his short hair whipping around his face. Kimihiro hunched his shoulders against the cold invisible current and walked swiftly to get out of the cutting wind. He found himself standing within a small group of pines behind the shrine, the air hissing through the branches above sounding like an airborne sea.

Aside from the movement above, it was curiously quiet. Kimihiro held still, hands slowing where they held his coat more firmly around his throat. There was something strange, he realized, something out of place. Not an immediate threat but a thread of something...

It wasn't until he looked down that he saw the crow.

The bird lay on its back, the neatly folded wings framing the black scaled feet tucked up against the softer plumage of its body. Its head was cast back on its neck, closed beak pointing away from its body. If Kimihiro hadn't been able to see the flickering spirit that dwelt within the envelope of flesh and feathers, he would have thought it was dead.

Kimihiro crouched down, watching as the bird's head turned to regard him with a pale blue eye. The crow snapped half-heartedly at his finger but let its head sink back to the ground, not moving as he gently stroked a finger down its breast. It seemed too tired to care. Or maybe it knew he meant no harm.

There was a low caw overhead. Kimihiro glanced up to see a crow in one of the pines, hopping to another branch. Once it had gained its new perch the crow tilted its head sideways, staring down at him. More movement caught his eyes. Kimihiro's heartbeat sped up as he realized there were numerous crows in the branches above him, watching expectantly. Chillingly silent as they followed him with their dark eyes.

Kimihiro had the unresisting crow in his hands before he realized it. The folded feathers were smooth under his fingers, fragile. A blue eye remained fixed on him as he secured his grip but the dying crow didn't make any move to defend itself. The crow was curiously light as he lifted it from the ground. For its size he had expected more weight but the large body was like a cage of feathers, hollow and lacking substance that made weight.

Once he was holding it, Kimihiro hesitated. There was nothing he could do. Even now he could see the dampened soul of the bird flickering within its body. Despite the lack of injury or any sign of disease, it was close to death. It was as if it had suddenly dropped from the sky to lie where it fell. The pale stare it trained on him and the lack of resistance against his handling suggested that it was too exhausted to do anything on its own behalf.

Kimihiro's eyes rose to the trees again. The crows were still silent, unmoving except for a slight shift of scaled feet on rough bark. The dark eyes remained fixed on him and the crow he held. They could sense the impending death just as he could. If he hadn't come along it was likely that they would have begun to attack the fallen crow, hastening its tumble into death.

The image of black wings, torn flesh and bloodstained ground flashed into his mind. Kimihiro's hands tightened around the crow until a warning snap of its beak had him loosening his grip. He looked around, spotting a low hedge made of tangled bushes. It was thick enough that the crow would have shelter from the other birds that were waiting for its death.

As Kimihiro walked to the hedge the crows in the branches above followed him with their eyes, some hopping to other branches to follow him. A creeping murder that slowly yet confidently moved in. Kimihiro tried to ignore them but his shoulders were hunched defensively as he crossed the ground below the eerily silent waiting crows. Just as he was about to kneel next to the hedge, the crow in his hands suddenly twitched. Kimihiro glanced down to see the flickering lines in the crow's body suddenly die out and then he was holding a lifeless bundle of feathers. The crow hadn't made a sound.

Kimihiro laid the crow under the hedge, far enough under the stabbing branches that the waiting crows would have a hard time reaching the body. And then he was on his feet once more, leaving the small grove and its silent murder that was now moving restlessly, no longer held back by his presence. There was nothing more he could do and he still had to explore the grounds thoroughly.

A number of angry squawks erupted behind him as he left the pines. Quarrelling noises full of contestation and hunger. It was all too easy to imagine what the waiting birds were now doing. Kimihiro's shoulders hunched and he walked faster, refusing to turn around. He didn't stop until he was at the front of the shrine once more. The noise of the crows was muted by the whistling of the wind that lashed around him. It was cold but it was preferable to what he had just left.

A single crow call filled the air, cutting through the wind. Two sharp caws followed by a drawn out third that sounded like a dying gurgle. Kimihiro froze; the lingering sound trailed a cold shiver down his back, like a fall of frozen spiders. He slowly looked up to see a crow sitting on the low branch of a pine that stretched forth across the sky like an unsteady arm. The wind ruffled its feathers, pressing the soft plumage of its chest back in untidy patches. It would have appeared almost comical if not for the faint noises coming from behind the shrine.

Kimihiro pulled his coat closer around him. But the chill that filled him was not from the wind or the cold temperature. The lone crow was now peering down at him. Head tilted sideways to regard him with one pale eye.

He knew this crow. And worse, he was beginning to suspect he knew its master.

The confrontation lengthened. The bleached eye locked with the darker eyes of the lord that stood below. The crow didn't seem alarmed by his presence. The pale eye remained fixed, the intelligence behind it assessing what it saw. Then, just as suddenly as it had become aware of him, the crow's head turned away, dismissing him. It launched off from the branch and rode the wind down to the pond at the foot of the hill.

Kimihiro watched its path with a hollow feeling. There was no question now as to whether there had been an incursion or not.

xXx

Doumeki emerged from the shrine with Lord Grantham to see Kimihiro standing outside. His back was towards them as he faced out into the trees that obscured the mansion and stable from sight.

"Excuse me." With barely a pause to receive Lord Grantham's nod, Doumeki descended the steps of the shrine and walked over to where Kimihiro was standing. The wind was lashing him, disturbing clothing and hair but he didn't seem to notice. Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro's face. The lord was staring out at the pond below, dark eyes set in a slightly distracted look.

Doumeki was suddenly reminded of Haruka's station overlooking the pond. "What is it?"

Kimihiro frowned. "A trace of something. I'm not sure what." His eyes turned to Doumeki. "Did you find anything in the shrine?"

"No." All of the ward lines had been intact and there was no damage to the inner sanctum. There had been nothing to indicate that the integrity of the shrine had been threatened in any way.

Kimihiro's gaze had turned to the pond again. His mouth suddenly tightened. His eyes swept Doumeki in a considering glance before he turned back to the obscured view of the water below. "I'm going to search the pond." He made a nervous little gesture, a slight hunch of his shoulders. "Keep close." The last words were soft, a quiet request.

Doumeki blinked before peering at the other man with an intent look. Kimihiro had never said anything like it before. But Kimihiro ignored his sudden intense scrutiny. Instead the lord started down the path that headed towards the stone steps leading down to the pond below.

Doumeki glanced back at Lord Grantham who started after them at the silent command. Doumeki didn't wait for the lord, however, but descended the steep flight at Kimihiro's side. He glanced at Kimihiro as they left the shrine behind but the lord was distracted, a slightly grim expression stamped on his face. Search the pond. Doumeki was under the impression that it wasn't that simple.

Lord Grantham caught up with them on the stairs but kept silent as he followed the prince and the practitioner down to the pond. He seemed to realise that something was wrong and had decided to keep out of the way. There was no demur when they reached the garden and Doumeki requested he wait at some distance while they both approached the pond.

They stood there silently for a few moments, Kimihiro surveying the pond and Doumeki watching Kimihiro. While he was in the shrine it appeared that Kimihiro had discovered the problem that they had been seeking. And it was clear that Kimihiro was worried.

xXx

1) The chozuya described is pretty much the same as those found in Shinto shrines today.

2) Once again an aspect of Shinto shrines. The bell is rung by worshipers to announce to the god that they have come to pray. In this case it would be the spirit that is tied to the shrine.

3) The same traditional offerings found at Shinto shrines today: water, salt, rice, sake & vegetables.

4) Representations of air (bird), earth (tree), water (fish) and fire (flames).

5) The inner sanctum of a Shinto shrine that houses a shintai, a sacred object that symbolises the presence of that enshrined kami. In this universe the shintai are the objects that tie a certain spirit to a shrine.

xXx


	40. Tainted Land V

Entwining Fates:

Tainted Land

V

Kimihiro regarded the water warily. He wasn't certain why it made him so uneasy except for the path of the crow over its reflective surface. Perhaps it was the death of crow on the shrine grounds. Whatever it was, he run out other places to check. And that left only one course.

He glanced aside to Doumeki. Lord Grantham stood some distance away, kept back by the need to have no distractions. Kimihiro was certain that the lord had some suspicions about him but he was keeping quiet about it. Despite the show of modernity he was at pains to create, the lord was quite concerned about the possibility of having a taint on his estate grounds. Especially one so close to the shrine.

"I'm going to look into the pond." It was the simplest way to put it. He expected that Doumeki would understand what he meant. He knew the Keeper had read the books that Hikideshi had prepared. It showed in his manner and questions when they encountered some difficulty. "If you see anything strange, get back as far from the pond as you can."

Doumeki's arms crossed. "What sort of things?" He hadn't contested the instruction and Kimihiro knew that the prince would ignore it. If anything happened, Doumeki wasn't going to budge unless he moved either. He'd learnt that already. Sometimes he wondered why he wasted his breath.

"Any sign of disturbance. Strange movement of the water or any discolouration." Kimihiro frowned. "Or if you suddenly get any feelings of uneasiness. You may not have sight but you can still sense things." It wasn't true of most people but it was becoming increasingly apparent that Doumeki's sensitivity was growing. Ever since they had raised the secondary boundary, Doumeki had become more aware of the invisible currents that flowed unseen around him. It wasn't enough that Kimihiro felt safe to let him venture around on his own but he trusted that in the case of something going wrong, it would be enough to give him a warning.

That was what he was gambling on anyway. He hated opening his sight to its full extent. What he saw everyday was only half of what he could see when he actually concentrated on _looking_ at what was around him. It was much like adjusting focus to gaze into the distance except he always saw things that no human was meant to see. His full sight wasn't natural and never had been.

Doumeki nodded and Kimihiro took a deep breath, turning back to the pond and closing his eyes. His right eye began aching in protest immediately but Kimihiro ignored the involuntary twitching and voluntarily opened what had been ripped open so many years ago.

The pain was intense as always. A blinding flare that burned back from his eye to his brain, creating a living cord of fire that fed the headache that started to pound. But Kimihiro ignored it, opening his eyes to stare at the pond.

As first it flared brilliantly as if the sun had been dropped into its depths. But as Kimihiro got used to the sight, he began to see past the silver surface and into the depths that were concealed from normal vision. The darker solid curves of rock at the bottom, quicksilver flashes of fish that darted through the water and a thousand small glitters of the microscopic motes of life that flowed through the water itself.

And there, towards the bank furthest from the red gate leading to the shrine, was what he had been looking for. A dark swirl that was just the faintest brushstroke, as if something dark had touched the water and left something foul and loathsome behind. A stain that had been diluted by the purifying nature of the waters yet remained a thin thread, a dark ribbon that had persevered. It wasn't enough to cause harm. Unless your constitution was such that you were sensitive to such things.

"It's there." Kimihiro kept his eyes on the pond, averted from Doumeki. "A taint."

There was silence as Doumeki presumably looked out at the pond to follow his gaze. "It hasn't been purified by the waters." It was a question. It was a basic fact that water was a purifying agent, an element that erased evil.

Kimihiro closed his eyes and closed his sight as much as he was able. The burning core of pain in his right eye died to a sullen ache and the headache dulled somewhat. "No." The problem was nagging at him too. One explanation could be that what had originally caused the taint had been so strong it had taken this long to disperse. In that case he couldn't say how long it had been there. It may have been the original reason for the shrine to be built at the location in the first place.

But that didn't explain why more than a week had passed before Aurion had started to sense the taint and react to it.

Or the presence of the crow.

Kimihiro's eyes narrowed as he stared at the place where he had seen the taint. Now that he knew it was there it was a constant presence, like a broken branch scratching against a pane of glass on a windy day. Constant and, now that he had noticed it, impossible to ignore. A thinning thread of corruption that died as it reached further into the pond...

Kimihiro suddenly span and began walking towards Lord Grantham. The lord had been watching them patiently from several meters away but now unconsciously straightened as Kimihiro drew closer. "Lord Grantham. Where is the source of the water for the pond?"

The lord's gaze moved out to the pond before returning to Kimihiro. "The river. A system of canals and aqueducts provide water for the estate. The stables and the pond are supplied with the same line."

Doumeki had put it together. He stepped forward, drawing Lord Grantham's attention away from Kimihiro. "We'll need to look at the canal."

xXx

Half an hour later, the three of them were following the path of the channel behind one of the men who Lord Grantham had set to ensure its maintenance. The man had been told that they were searching for some sort of possible blockage and he now walked ahead of them, a thick set figure with a long pole carried effortlessly in one large hand. Every so often its end would brush against branches overhanging the path, letting loose a fall of dead leaves to the ground.

But Kimihiro wasn't paying much attention to what was going on around him. He was focusing on the thread that ran through the water, sometimes there, sometimes thinned to nothing in the flow. It had been growing stronger, the traces suddenly jumping in frequency as they travelled up the watercourse. But now as they drew closer to the first sluice gate, it was nearly a constant presence. Whatever had caused the taint, it was here.

He glanced aside at Doumeki who held his gaze for a moment before turning to the worker. "Check here."

The man looked at Lord Grantham and shrugged when he received a confirming nod. "If you say so." He stepped onto the arch of the gate, inspecting the flow of water as it rushed through the grates set to either side.

"When was the last time you cleaned it?" Kimihiro was drawing attention but the matter was too important to stand back and let things progress without guidance.

The man pushed the cap he wore further back on his head. "A few months ago. All sorts of things can build up and we clean it before the start of the rains." He squinted up at the sky. "They were late this year but we still cleaned it at the usual time."

He peered over the side of the wall, looking at the flow. "I'd say you're right about a blockage though. The flow isn't what it should been. Especially after the rain last night." The pole he held was lowered over the side and inserted into the water, a small spray of water rising where the water was forced into a flow either side. "Most likely is that something's got caught up against the grate."

They all watched quietly as the man carefully searched the grate. A look of surprise crossed his face after a few minutes. "There's something there." He frowned. Before anyone could stop him, he'd slid off the sluice and jumped into the shallow canal, thrusting the pole deep into the water at a shallower angle. The pole got stuck almost immediately and the man wrenched the pole upward, freeing the obstruction and lifting it to the surface. One deft move of the pole and it was lifted from the water.

The wet mass trailed water as it arched through the air and landed on the earth next to the sluice. It broke apart on impact, black lines erupting from the burst body. Shifting, writhing bodies that churned like so many maggots on a corpse. Kimihiro's hand rose to cover his mouth against the noxious smell that rose in the air in a series of black clouds. But even as he recoiled from the foul darkness, Kimihiro's eyes were fixed on their dead host. A small body of bone, decaying flesh and just enough red fur to identify it as what it had once been.

A fox.

"Could it have washed down stream and lodged in the grate?" Doumeki had stepped up next to him, shoulder brushing his own. The unsettling sickness Kimihiro was experiencing was muted almost immediately.

The man pushed his hat back to scratch his head. "It might have." But he sounded a bit doubtful. He waded through the water and used the pole to help himself out of the canal, water trailing off his clothes onto the dry ground. "There are more gates upstream. It would have to have been washed in before that."

Kimihiro had no doubts of what had happened. A fox to kill a hunter. A piece of delightful irony that had been set in a deliberate act. A steady stream of poison that was carried further down the stream, weakened by the water but still enough so that it collected in the pond and leaked through into the supply used by the stables. After weeks of drinking the tainted water, it was no surprise that Aurion was in the state he was. What was surprising was that he hadn't died. The constant ingestion of the water was more than enough to upset his entire equilibrium. Once the traces had begun to build up in his body, it would only have been a matter of time before they reached the levels where his heart would give out.

Doumeki had been surveying the putrefying corpse with unreadable eyes. "Lord Grantham. I'll need some privacy to deal with this."

The lord had been staring at what remained of the fox with repulsion but at the Keeper's words, comprehension rippled across his face. "Of course." With once last wary look at the fox, he gestured at the workman and they both walked back the way they had come.

Doumeki waited until they had disappeared from sight before speaking. "What is it?"

Kimihiro retrieved one of the snail picks from his sleeve, silver glinting in the light, and bent to thrust it in the ground between him and the churning mass. The nearest of the black tentacles recoiled and Kimihiro retrieved another. There was no way he was going to risk their escape. "Suzumebachi." He slid a glance at Doumeki as he walked a few steps around the fox and planted another snail pick in the ground. "You should have read about them."

Doumeki crossed his arms. "Larvae spirits that take over a host and devour it." He glanced at the fox. "Shouldn't they have left by now?"

Kimihiro grimaced, retrieving another pick. "The fox must have drowned." And the suzumebachi remained in the body, their taint joining the flow with the decomposing flesh. He stabbed the pick into the soil. By now the fox was entirely concealed by the twisting larvae which were piling on top of each other to escape the closing ward. Their movements released a haze which, long diffused by the water in which they had lain, rose up in a thick shifting mass. Kimihiro coughed as he walked forward to continue the circle, one hand covering his mouth as he reached with the other for another pick.

Doumeki's eyes were on him, a dissatisfied frown marking his face. He walked over to stand beside Kimihiro. "It's been more than a week. The running water should have killed them."

Granted a reprieve from the noxious air, Kimihiro planted the fourth pick and reached for the last. "It should have." Kimihiro eyes were on the frantically writhing mass, like so many dismembered fingers, grasping at everything around them. They were starting to attack each other, sensing their impending doom. He planted the last snail pick, closing the ward. "But these aren't normal suzumebachi." He glanced at Doumeki, who was staring hard at the decomposing fox in the centre of the ward. "Can you sense them?" The threat contained, he was curious.

Gold eyes rose to pin him with a slightly surprised stare before staring intently at the fox once more. "I can tell that something's not right." His gaze turned to Kimihiro. "What do you mean by saying they 'aren't normal'?"

Doumeki was like a terrier sometimes. You could throw dog biscuits at him to distract him and he'd simply eat them before going back to gnawing your leg. Kimihiro pulled the silver watch from his pocket. "They're more powerful. Suzumebachi are usually weak spirits." Like the ones he had dealt with this morning. "But these are stronger than any I've seen before." Enough so that he was going to use Ryuu instead of trying to deal with it himself.

He called the construct's name and the gold dragon pulled itself up from the surface of the watch. It peered between the gloved fingers that held it, long tail twitching behind it, as it stared down at the spirits devouring each other inside the ward. After a few moments of observation it suddenly leapt down, growing slightly in size, and ran into the ward, beginning to rip the recoiling strands to pieces with ruthless claws. The black lines were soon dissolving into liquid sprays that turned into noxious gas as they hit the air. Shielded by Doumeki's close presence, Kimihiro only suffered a faint queasiness he fought with a clamped jaw.

Doumeki's eyes traced the dragon's movements. "Were they purposefully made that way?"

Kimihiro had forgotten that was mentioned in the books. "It's possible. There have been cases where denizens of the second world have effectively engineered other spirits to create certain attributes." They tended to be those that had once been human. Elemental creatures didn't think that way. "But it isn't common."

Ryuu killed the last of the suzumebachi even as he spoke. Despite their new strength they had been weakened by the water and it was like letting a fox in to a hen house. It had only taken a slight use of power to destroy them. "It's more likely they've grown stronger in the face of less opposition." But that didn't mean that something hadn't take advantage of that fact.

Kimihiro touched one of the picks to incinerate what remained of the fox and the decomposing body disappeared into flames. Once it died back, Kimihiro started retrieving the snail picks, pulling them from the ground. Doumeki helped him, handing over the last two, and Kimihiro returned them to his sleeve. "It's possible that the fox was infected and drowned crossing the stream." Ryuu had returned to his palm and Kimihiro stroked the small dragon's head with an absent finger.

Doumeki wasn't having any of it. "But you don't believe that."

Kimihiro's gaze shifted to the burnt patch of grass. "There's no such thing as coincidence."

xXx

They returned to the pond, Kimihiro determined to ensure that the taint was dispersing after the removal of the source. A glance into the water revealed that the taint lingered, a thin midnight thread. Even with the presence of the shrine, the tenacious intrusion remained. It was an indication of how strong the defiling presence had been. Kimihiro had gained a greater appreciation for the colt's resilience. He suspected he would have been dead after a week and the horse had lasted more than a month. It must have been a result of his hunter blood, enough of a dilution that he had some protection against the weakness of his shimme heritage.

Kimihiro opened his eyes to gaze out on the pond once more, watching the gentle wind-blow ripples distort the red lines of the gate's reflection. "A purifying rite should help to ensure that it continues to disperse. Though the shrine already ensures that." He turned to Doumeki to find him still staring at the pond. "The colt can't stay here though. The water source is such that he'd die if he continued to drink it." Kimihiro grimaced. "It's one of the reasons why shimme are so hard to breed. They need to remain on sacred ground to ensure that they aren't being unintentionally poisoned."

His words had caught Doumeki's attention. The gold eyes lifted from the water to regard him with one of those stares that made it hard to know exactly what was going on behind those pale eyes. "I'll buy him."

The words were so unexpected that it took Kimihiro a moment to process what Doumeki had said. "Buy him?" What was Doumeki going to do with a shimme colt? With the festivals abolished there wasn't much that could be done with them. Their sensitivity made their care a tedious task and effectively barred them from being used as a normal horse would be. They were a relic of a dying past, just like him. Both soon to be swept aside by the tide of modernisation that was moving ever forward.

But Doumeki didn't seem to realize the problem. "Lord Grantham won't refuse and he should be safe in the Southern Ward."

Doumeki had made up his mind. There was no point arguing with him. Not about the fact that Doumeki's status wouldn't allow Lord Grantham to protest the purchase, even if he felt otherwise. Not about the fact that he had for all intents and purposes bought a horse that was practically useless. Though that last point was a rather weak one. Kimihiro was glad that the colt would not be condemned. If he had been sure of the defence of his own estate, he would have made a move to purchase the colt himself. At least Doumeki would provide a safe haven for the horse.

Kimihiro sighed. "Send word when he arrives." He turned his attention back to the pond, missing the small smile that appeared on Doumeki's lips. "I'll make certain that there are no more problems." For there wasn't any doubt that Doumeki would be the colt's owner before the day was out.

Kimihiro kept his eyes on the water as Doumeki left to talk to the lord about the state of the pond and his intention to purchase his colt. Though with Doumeki it would be more like a statement than a proposition.

A caw echoed from the shrine up on the top of the hill, drifting down to the pond. Kimihiro frowned, gaze lifting to follow the stone steps to where they disappeared into the greenery. Something had set the fox into water without breaking the estate's defences. And then there was the presence of the crow and the death at the shrine. There was a shifting of currents he couldn't see, a turn in the tide he could almost touch. And in some ways it was more frightening than the threats that he could see.

That they were being quiet meant they didn't want to gather attention.

xXx

Doumeki glanced back at Kimihiro's slender figure silhouetted against the waters of the pond. Wind lifting his hair up around his head and coat gently flapping around him, he presented a solitary figure, apart and untouched from events that flowed around him. A part of the shadows and sidelines.

Doumeki tried to shake the strange feeling that had overtaken him. He always felt uneasy when Kimihiro was quiet. He far preferred his burning glares and lively accompanying gestures. He was somehow less vital and real otherwise.

"The taint remains in the pond?" Lord Grantham was alarmed to say the least.

"I'll perform a purifying rite." He would just be going through the motions as Kimihiro had said but it would at least make it seem like something was being done. "But Aurion won't be able to stay in the vicinity. Continued contact will kill him."

"I'd have to have him taken back to the outer reaches of the estate." The idea clearly was a setback. The lord had intended to display his latest success in hopes of gathering interest in his next breeding program.

"Were you intending to sell him?" Doumeki had already decided to buy him but it was polite to ask.

Lord Grantham was distracted. "I can't stud him out now. Sale is the only other alternative." The problem that had been so obviously on Kimihiro's mind was now in Lord Grantham's.

"How much?"

Lord Grantham blinked at the blunt question. But the realization of what Doumeki was asking soon flooded his features. "Your Highness." He hesitated for a moment obviously trying to find the right words. "I can't sell him as a hunter anymore."

"I don't hunt." Doumeki had never seen the lure of hunting down a fox in order to see it being ripped to pieces.

Lord Grantham seemed stumped at that answer. It was clear he was trying work out the prince's sudden interest.

"I'll want him delivered to the Southern Ward." That should make it clear that he wanted to buy the colt.

"Of course." Lord Grantham was still looking somewhat puzzled but didn't seem to be inclined to argue anymore. Even if he did look like he was questioning the prince's sense in buying a horse that had no clear use for him.

Doumeki turned back to the pond and Kimihiro. After the purification had been carried out, he intended to leave as soon as possible. The place was having a bad effect on Kimihiro.

xXx

I suppose if he wants to, Doumeki can buy whatever he wants. Though I must admit his recent purchases are all looking a bit strange grouped together XD

LOL. I can just see Riku going through accounts of Doumeki's personal expenses. Food, food, sake, food, mystery auction purchase (...Your Highness, what are you doing? sweatdrop), food, food, wine, food, liquor, sake, food, food, horse...horse?

And it's only going to get weirder XD


	41. Tainted Land VI

Entwining Fates:

Tainted Land

VI

After Doumeki had carried out the purification rite at the shrine, he had surprised Kimihiro by refusing Lord Grantham's offer of afternoon tea. In other circumstances, Kimihiro would have been annoyed at the presumption of Doumeki inviting himself over for the afternoon (for Doumeki refusing could only mean he expected to be fed elsewhere) but now he found himself distracted. After waiting through Lord Grantham's farewells, Kimihiro now had weightier considerations on his mind.

Kimihiro's gaze ran over the carriage. The glossy black surface glinted in the subdued afternoon sun. It was a solid vehicle, with reinforced axels and steel-rimmed wheels. The cabin itself was similarly built, with wood and metal creating a frame that was fashioned to provide flexibility and strength. A modest trace of looping lines ran the power of the ward that was etched into the cabin underbelly through its frame, a different type of protection. It was a strong ward but to Kimihiro's eyes, which were used to the crisscrossing wards of his own carriage, it looked rather frail.

He turned to see that Doumeki was watching him. The prince had come to stand beside him and now waited expectantly for his next move.

Kimihiro tried to ignore the nervous churning in his gut and the slight catch in his breath as he tried not to think too much on what he was intending to do. It was the perfect opportunity to check. He might not be able to come back here in the future and it was best to deal with the matter sooner rather than later.

He had to be sure that it still held.

"Do you have another engagement?" Doumeki usually cleared the day when he was visiting but Kimihiro was aware that the Keeper had other duties.

"No." Doumeki's eyes flickered to the carriage and back to Kimihiro's face. "Is there somewhere you need to go?"

Kimihiro's fingers worked against each other as he resisted reaching for the timepiece kept in his pocket. "There's something I need to check." He clenched his hands to stop their movements. Tried to ignore the sensation of something heavy pressing on his chest to make breathing more difficult. "The crossroads of the south-eastern highway."

Doumeki's gaze sharpened.

Kimihiro's gaze slid away from the intent look. "I need to see if the dosojin still holds." The consecrated stones were placed at every crossroad to protect travellers against the cumulation of spirits that were channelled along the lines of the roads (1). They were not maintained as well as they had once been - in the past wardens would regularly check on the dosojin within the parish boundaries of their shrines - and as a result those that remained were left to shoulder an increasing burden. This one in particular was an important marker. Whether it still held or had faltered would tell him more than the shrine on the Grantham estate had.

Doumeki was silent for a moment in which Kimihiro could feel the prince's gaze still boring into him. But after a few seconds he spoke. "I'll make the arrangements."

Still avoiding his gaze, Kimihiro nodded and looked to the east. Clouds were gathering on the horizon in anticipation of a storm.

xXx

Silence reigned in the carriage as it set off for the crossroads. Kimihiro was quiet, more withdrawn than Doumeki had ever seen him. There was none of the nervous shifting or uneasy glances that usually occurred when ever they took the carriage. Instead Kimihiro was unnaturally still, his head down and fixed firmly on his tightly-wound fingers.

Doumeki watched him the entire ride but Kimihiro didn't seem to notice, locked within his thoughts. Left with silence, Doumeki had nothing to do but reflect on the situation. Kimihiro's request to journey to the crossroads where his parents had died had taken him by surprise. It seemed strange coincidence when he had been reading the official report that morning. It was possible that the visit would provide the answers he was seeking but Doumeki had the feeling that the cost would be high.

Despite his request it was clear that Kimihiro wasn't happy about what he was doing. But as ever, Kimihiro was determined to do what he considered his duty no matter the cost to himself. While checking on the status of a dosojin seemed a straightforward matter, Doumeki knew it wasn't that simple. Nothing ever was with Kimihiro.

About twenty minutes later the carriage began to slow. Doumeki glanced out the window to see the pale lines of several roads converging. The crossroads.

He glanced at Kimihiro. The lord was looking out the window as well, a strange expression on his face. As if he was feeling so many emotions that only pieces of each showed on his face, making his thoughts impossible to read.

The carriage slowly came to a stop and the footman jumped down to open the door. Kimihiro was rising from his seat and moving towards the opening door before Doumeki could say anything. Watching Kimihiro emerge shakily out of the carriage Doumeki was beginning to think the detour had been a bad idea. The lord's pale skin was coated with a sheen of sweat giving him a sickly cast. He looked ill, more so than he had after the encounter with the Canar relic.

It was a strong reaction. One that told Doumeki that, to Kimihiro, this place was more than the site where his parents had died.

xXx

It was the same.

Kimihiro slowly walked down the road toward the intersection of the two roads. The only sound was his steps on the compacted ground of the road and the keen of the wind that whipped his hair around his face. The all-too fast beating of his heart. He barely registered Doumeki's close presence as the Keeper walked beside him. He was too busy trying to suppress the cold shifting sensation that gathered below his ribs.

The thin gravel of the road crunched under his boots. A larger gap between each sound as his steps slowed. He didn't want to be here again. He had never wanted to come here again.

The crossroads were abandoned. Except for the carriage parked along the road running to the west. The black cabin and the dark coats of the horses were like shadows in their pale surroundings. The washed-out gravel of the road, the skeletal trees that lined the road against the bleached fields full of dry grasses. It made the scene feel empty and surreal.

And then there were the memories.

Kimihiro hands clenched and he swallowed hard. His eye suddenly stabbed pain, as if being here once more had reawakened the agony of its injury. It had been aching steadily since he had opened his sight to its full extent at the pond. And now that he was here, the sharp pain was a nagging presence that pulled at the memories he was trying to block out.

He closed his eyes against the pale landscape, feeling the trembles that ran through his fisted hands, weakening their grasp. Sweat had sprung up on his skin, chill and clammy. A bodily discomfort that mirrored the chaos of his thoughts. Kimihiro tried to slow the frightened racing of his heart.

There was nothing here now. He knew it but his body refused to accept it, locked as it was in the memories of that night. The events that he refused to let replay in his mind.

Haruka. Haruka had ensured that the crossroads was clear of all taint, a barrier against what had once breached the lines. If anything still held in the slide of protections, that assurance of Haruka's would.

His eyes opened again. He was close to the centre of the crossroads, the dangerous joining of four paths. Almost inexorably, his gaze fell on the twisted tree with its pale roots grasping at the dark soil like so many split fingers. The image suddenly imposed itself into a reaching hand and it all came rushing back.

For a split second he was rooted to the spot as sweat broke out on his skin and his veins were flushed with ice, causing his hear to stutter. But the closing of his throat jolted him into action. He lurched to the ditch at the side of the road, falling to his knees as his body attempted to eject the images in his mind, the scents and sounds that had been burned into his memory, in a bitter rush of acidic bile.

Stray pieces of gravel cut into his palms and through the knees of his trousers but Kimihiro didn't care. He was consumed by the horrid wretched feeling in his gut, the burning of his throat and the savage stabbing of his eye as tears leaked down his face. Finally the violent purging of his of his body subsided and he simply stayed at the side of the road, upper body supported by his shaking arms as he gasped for breath.

There was a crunch of gravel beside him.

Doumeki.

Kimihiro wished he could crawl away somewhere to curl up and hide. He had never felt so mortified in his entire life. He has specifically asked to be brought here and now he had disgraced himself in front of Doumeki of all people. Horrified embarrassment joined the wretched wrung out feeling that had over taken him. He averted his gaze from the prince who stood at his side.

He closed his eyes, trying to calm his breathing and pull the shattered remains of his dignity into an appearance of composure. At least emptied of the contents of his stomach, he was now able to control the roiling queasiness that made him feel so wretched. Only the weak hollow feeling remained. The acidic residue sour in his mouth, Kimihiro shakily started rising to his feet, wiping the tears from his face and keeping his eyes averted from Doumeki who continued to hover over him.

A strong hand gripped around his upper arm, pulling him up. But Doumeki didn't stop once he was on his feet. Kimihiro found himself being towed away from the gully at the side of the road and sat down on a rough rounded surface. Kimihiro automatically set his hands on it. As his fingers touched the rough surface, a warm sensation filled him, wiping out the shifting uncertainly and hollow weak feeling that ran though him. Even the jagged pain in his eye faded, slipping back into a dull ache. The dosojin. Only Doumeki would use such a sacred monument as a park bench.

He moved his fingers slightly over the rough surface, eyes still averted from Doumeki who was reaching into a pocket. His eyes slid shut. It was Haruka's work - ward and stone. A powerful ward that still resonated with the signature of the former Keeper. It was almost as if Haruka was at his side.

**Something brushed his cheek and Kimihiro's eyes opened.**

**"You're looking better than when I last saw you." Pale pink petals drifted on a soft breeze, showering Haruka's hair and kimono. Fragile flakes which fell down in a sparse, flitting curtain. **

**One of Haruka's hands' rose, brushing Kimihiro's cheek with the back of his fingers. "But I can't say this is much of an improvement."**

"Oi."

Kimihiro blinked to see Doumeki staring at him from close quarters, their noses nearly touching. One of Doumeki's hands lay along his cheek in an eerie mirror of Haruka's touch, thumb under his jaw to hold Kimihiro's head up.

Doumeki seemed satisfied to see Kimihiro's eyes focusing on him and pulled back, fingers sliding away from his face. Cold metal met his fingers as Doumeki thrust something into his hands. "Here. Drink it."

Still feeling somewhat shaky after being sick and confused after that strange sideslip with Haruka, Kimihiro obeyed. He lifted the flask to his lips and took a large swallow. Sake spilled over his tongue and down his throat and Kimihiro coughed as he lowered the flask from his lips.

He held out the flask to Doumeki, the other across his mouth as he continued to cough. Through his watering eyes he could see Doumeki screw on the cap and return the flask back into his jacket pocket. Trust Doumeki to carry a flask of double-distilled sake around with him. The thought was nearly enough to make him smile. Where he was didn't seem to bother him so much any more seated where he was with Doumeki so near.

Doumeki's pale eyes remained on Kimihiro as he brought his coughing fit under control. "Are you alright?"

Kimihiro's eyes lifted at the question. It was the first time that Doumeki had actually asked. It was an indication of just how concerned the prince was. Kimihiro nodded, one hand still pressed to the dosojin. With the comforting solid presence of the warded point beneath him, Kimihiro's inner turmoil was beginning to subside.

Doumeki's eyes shifted to where his hand rested on the stone surface. "It still holds?" It was still physically intact but Doumeki had learned that physical damage wasn't the only kind.

"It does." It was clear that the dosojin's power was still as strong as it had been when it was first erected by Haruka almost twenty years ago. A fact that had him almost as relieved as he had been when the older man had knelt down before him and explained what it meant. It meant the same now. That the lines surrounding the capital still held. Whatever was outside their boundary hadn't breached the lines yet. They could only nibble around the edges, testing the strength that held them back.

It was a mixture of good and bad news. Good in that while the cracks were beginning the show, the wards of the city still held. The incidents that were occurring behind within the capital seemed to be actions of the spirits that already existed within the wards rather than an invading tide. But if the wards were still holding, it was only possible that whatever was in the city had already been within them. Either there was a crack in which several spirits had slipped through or something with had been dormant within the wards was awakening.

Doumeki's sharp eyes were on the dosojin on which he perched. "It's a memorial marker as well." His eyes slowly rose to meet Kimihiro's. "For your parents."

He wasn't surprised Doumeki knew. Kimihiro suspected that the prince had already known about his parents' death before the first time Doumeki had come to seek him out. With the tendency he showed to stick his nose into all of Kimihiro's business, it was likely that he had gone as far as to seek out the official reports. They didn't tell all the story - Haruka had ensured that - but it was enough to tell the inquisitive prince where and when it had happened.

Kimihiro's eyes fell on the stone he was sitting on. Next to his leg he could see the familiar shape of cherry blossoms carved into the stone and what could only be the clawed foot of a dragon. His throat was suddenly tight as he suddenly realised what Doumeki had seen. Haruka had done more than cleanse the crossroads with a dosojin. He had erected also made the dososjin a gorinto, a memorial marker.

He slid off the stone to kneel next to it, careless of the damage he was doing to his clothes. Two small dragons, their tails twined together as they rested on a branch of cherry blossoms. Kimihiro traced a finger over the small sinuous forms. Two fierce spirits united in death as they had been in life.

Kimihiro swallowed hard. He had been unable to ensure they rested peacefully. But Haruka had acted for him. Just as Haruka had always been there. The image of the older man on a backdrop of falling petals flashed through his mind. He still was.

His fingers trailed from the dragons to the backdrop of cherry blossoms, the petals small raised curves beneath his fingers. He had been helpless back then but he wasn't now. He wasn't alone.

Kimihiro pressed his fingers hard against the stone impressing the feel of the petals into his fingertips. He going to allow what had occurred in the past to happen again. He would stop Them. If it was the last thing he did.

He would protect what had been given into his keeping.

xXx

Doumeki had been uncertain what to do. His first instinct had been to kneel down and place a hand on Kimihiro's bowed back but the lord's reaction had made him pause. It was obvious that Kimihiro was trying to gather himself together and would no doubt feel it a blow to his pride if Doumeki interfered. It wasn't until he had seen Kimihiro's humiliated hunched posture that he had jolted into action. Whether Kimihiro liked it or not, he wasn't going to leave him in that condition.

How shaken the lord was had soon become apparent from the way he had started going into shock. Or something like it. His eyes had gotten that darkened look that suggested he was seeing something that wasn't there. Doumeki had been relieved when he had started seeing again. The raw confused expression on his face had been disturbing.

As least the silent contemplation of the image carved on the stone was more comprehensible.

Kimihiro suddenly stood up. He stood, staring at the gorinto for a long moment before turning to face Doumeki. He looked tired but relieved. "We can go now." He cast a glance back at the stone and then started back towards the carriage. But Doumeki noticed that he avoided looking at his surroundings.

Doumeki shot a glance back at the crossroads before climbing into the cabin after Kimihiro.

Kimihiro had been here when his parents had died. Doumeki knew it as a certainty now. And whatever had happened hadn't been an accident.

xXx

Watanuki didn't know how he felt. Grief. Relief. Confusion. It was all a mix of emotions and he wasn't quite sure which of them was in the ascendancy. He was so distracted that he didn't even object when Doumeki sat beside him in the carriage instead of the opposite seat. To tell the truth, part of him was glad to have Doumeki's solid presence sitting next to him.

He didn't ask any questions, he was simply there.

As the carriage jolted into movement, Kimihiro's hand was picked up and something small was pressed into the palm. His fingers automatically closed around the small lopsided sphere, even as he looked at Doumeki in puzzlement as his hand was released.

Kimihiro uncurled his fingers only to blink at the small white and green stripped object in his hand. A peppermint.

"Your breath smells." Doumeki offered helpfully.

Kimihiro's eyes closed as pure homicidal rage surged through him. Doumeki was like a child sometimes. Blunt and to the point. Saying whatever popped into his head, regardless of the consequences would be. It was hard to say whether he knew what he was doing or he simply when on ahead regardless.

Kimihiro slid the sweet into his mouth before he could say something he would regret. "Thank you." His voice was tight with the effort to hold back his anger. Doumeki was obviously trying to be kind even if it did come across rather awkwardly.

Doumeki nodded agreeably and tucked the box of peppermints back into his pocket.

Kimihiro rubbed the spot where Doumeki's touch still lingered on his hand. For some reason the gesture had his anger fading. Kimihiro was slightly alarmed to find he was contemplating inviting Doumeki to dinner again. He struggled with the thought for a few moments before finally giving in. It was only fair with what Doumeki had done for him today. His eyes slid to Doumeki only to find the prince was watching him. It was curiously gentle expression, his gold eyes unguarded and concern marking his features. And for some reason it made Kimihiro experience a mixture of nervousness and confusion at the sight.

"Did you have plans for dinner?" He let his eyes lower from that open face and the strange feelings it caused. Suddenly he had a fear that Doumeki might refuse. That he would be left to take dinner in the dining room alone. That large empty room with the image of his parents untouchable on the wall.

"No." A hand rested lightly on his shoulder and Kimihiro was too surprised to bat it off. He looked up to see Doumeki had leaned closer towards him. His hand fell away once he met Kimihiro's eyes. "I don't have any plans."

Kimihiro couldn't meet that candid stare for long. "Then you might as well stay." It was an attempt to make Doumeki's acceptance less important than it was. But he couldn't deny that the prospect of something as normal as Doumeki eating across the table from him was something he wanted.

xXx

It was late when Kimihiro sat down at the small desk, tucking his robe around him. Doumeki had left several hours ago but Kimihiro had no intention of sleeping. Oblivion was elusive tonight. There were too many thoughts crowding his mind.

Doumeki's laconic complaints had distracted him from them earlier. Hikideshi had barely twitched an eyelash at the criticism of the meal he had prepared (it seemed that the butler had know his master's intentions before Kimihiro did), ignoring the prince's comments. Kimihiro, however, had been so incensed that he had finally shoved the pepper and salt across the table so the prince could ruin his tastebuds as much as he wanted.

There had been mostly silence after that except for Doumeki's loud munching. Despite his complaints, Kimihiro had noticed that his appetite hadn't decreased at all. He was beginning to suspect that Doumeki liked complaining for the sake of it. But even when he was quiet, Kimihiro still found his presence distracting.

Kimihiro's thoughts turned back to the crossroads. The gorinto that Haruka had erected and his strange appearance. Even dead, the man had power. Power enough to reach across the divide and provide comfort and reassurance.

But while Haruka had been the one to soothe his fears when he was younger, it was now Doumeki's presence that had anchored him firmly to the present. Just having him close was enough.

Kimihiro had recalled that open concerned expression Doumeki had worn, the clumsy and uniquely Doumeki attempts at comfort. The touch of his hand.

It hadn't been unpleasant. It had been...nice.

Heat started rising in Kimihiro's cheeks and he scowled, decisively reaching for pen and paper. The lavender writing paper was carefully placed on the desk and set the pen to paper. _Yuuko._ The force of his writing loosed a stray drop of ink but for once Kimihiro didn't care. The act of writing was helping to keep him distracted from other...things.

_Kimihiro._ The letters appeared slowly, the work of a languid hand. _How are things progressing with His Highness?_

Kimihiro scowled down at the paper, wondering, not for the first time, if more than just words were conveyed with Yuuko's letter system. He angrily scratched out a _Fine_ only realizing too late what a mistake that had been. Kimihiro could almost hear the delighted laughter before Yuuko's reply appeared.

_Aren't you the sly one, Kimihiro?_ He could almost image the gleeful look she was wearing. _Professing no interest but leading His Highness on._

Kimihiro's hand clenched around his pen, nearly snapping the fragile instrument in half. Aside from Doumeki, Yuuko was the only one who could ever let him lose his composure.

Another line flowed across the page, all sly enquiry. _Have you been feeding him?_

Kimihiro's jaw clenched. Feeding him. It wasn't like he had much of a choice. It was basic etiquette to provide food for one's guest. Doumeki just happened to visit a lot. And if he kept making pastries-

He ignored her question. _I visited Lord Grantham's estate today._ He purposefully left out 'we' in hopes that she wouldn't jump on the fact that Doumeki had been with him. _The lord had a shimme that was effected by tainted land._

_A shimme._ The words appeared slowly, a thoughtful inscription. _And His Highness bought the horse?_

Kimihiro had long since given up trying to figure out how Yuuko knew things. Things happened and it was just a fact of life that she knew. _Yes._

There were a few minutes where the lavender paper was blank. Then finally the graceful lines appeared. _Even when he's unaware of what he does, His Highness always finds a way._ There was a pause. Kimihiro could almost see Yuuko empty her pipe. _What sort of taint was it, Kimihiro?_

_Suzumebachi. There was a fox in the grate of the sluice supplying the stables and the pond next to the estate shrine._ Just writing the words was enough to raise the suspicions in his mind.

_In the water._ It was clear she had similar suspicions.

_The dosojin on the southern highways still holds._ And the wards of the city.

_It would. When it falls it will be too late._ There was a slight pause. _A boundary can hold things in as well as keeping things out._ It was a confirmation of what he knew but from Yuuko such information held more weight. _Be careful. The next items you send me will be tied to death._ She answered the question before he could ask. _In order to pay off your debt more quickly the price is greater. You will know them when you see them. Keep close to His Highness-_ There was a brief pause. _Contact me again tomorrow._

Kimihiro waited a moment but there was nothing more. Something must have come to Yuuko's attention. Kimihiro packed away the writing paper and pen before heading to the library. He wasn't going to get any sleep tonight.

xXx

**Smoke curled across his vision. Thin threads skated past on an invisible breeze. It shifted and a slight rain of petals fell down in a sparse, fragile curtain. **

**Doumeki traced the smoke back to its source. Haruka was standing further down the slope, staring at the pond. Doumeki frowned and slowly started down the slope to reach his grandfather's side.**

**Haruka's pale eyes slid sideways as Doumeki reached his side but said nothing. **

**Doumeki let the silence stretch for a few moments. "You were at the crossroads that day." His eyes were narrow as they fixed on his grandfather's face, watching for closely for any change of expression.**

**A plume of smoke rose from the cigarette between Haruka's lips. "You already know the answer to that."**

**Doumeki felt a surge of anger at the reply. Games. Half answers. It was always the same. It had been the same when he had been alive. Never had he simply come out and said what needed to be said. What Doumeki needed to hear. **

**"And they died." It came out harsher than he had intended, an edge of anger lining the blunt words. Seeing Kimihiro so quiet and withdrawn after he had been acting more normally lately, hurt more than he thought it would.**

**Haruka hadn't been moving but his body suddenly took on a deeper stillness. He slowly lowered the cigarette from his lips. "I knew that something was wrong." The pale, normally laughing eyes were shadowed. "But I was late." Haruka's eyes narrowed as he stared out across the pond. "And Kimihiro paid for it."**

**A tumble of emotions roiled through Doumeki's thoughts. Anger, disappointment, shame and frustration. Anger at the sudden information now when it had been denied so long. And a sliver of jealousy. Jealousy for the connection that Kimihiro and Haruka held and he was excluded from. **

**He struggled to keep the rising emotions in check. Clamping down on the anger and the rest of the dismal swirl. His jaw set as he watched the falling petals. **

**The silence stretched out between them, awkward and heavy with words unspoken. There was only the continuous fall of petals and the occasional ripple on the pond's smooth surface. **

**"All things have a beginning." Haruka said suddenly. Doumeki turned to find the older man's eyes fixed on the pond, all humour wiped from his eyes. "Start there."**

xXx

1) In Japanese culture dosojin are roadside icons erected to protect pedestrians. The term can also refer to the kami of or roads, borders, mountain passes and other transitional spaces. They protect villages from pestilence and disease as well as from travellers and spirits. I'm using them in both of these senses but with a few differences that will become clear later.

2) Gorinto are erected at graveyards or as memorial stones. I've made it so that it looks like a dosojin rather than the usual five-tiered construction.

xXx

Well, I think that was blunt enough. And hints of that famous Doumeki anger is coming to the fore. He's like a powderkeg ready to go! Yay! Just wait until we go poking around in your past, Doumeki XD

A fair bit to think on in this one (just like them all XD). A bit of history of the Watanuki line, Kimihiro's secret correspondence, Hikideshi confessing his true age, LOTS of shifts in the second world (tsunami indeed. We're in the calm now but later...XD), Aurion, crows, LOADS of foreshadowing and Haruka (yay!). And Kimihiro's changing regard for Doumeki XD

Fai and Kurogane next. It's about time you saw what they're up to :D Things are just starting to get interesting on that front XD Blood & Water will be up soon XD (two weeks at the most :)


	42. Blood & Water

Replies to Anonymous Reviewers:

**Ann:** Thank you, my dear XD Soon, soon :D You know me ;D

**andchipzz:** LOL. I wouldn't say that exactly XD But it's wonderful you're enjoying it so much! I try not to make it too long between updates. Things get forgotten, otherwise. An outline? No. I never do. It usually sorts itself out as I write. In this case, it was the first time Haruka stepped into the picture. Once he did, the last pieces fell into place XD That wonderfully frustrating man XD Thanks! Of course there will XD LOL. There is, you just have to look for it XD But it will become more blatant :D LOL. Not at all. I've got several universes where Doumeki and Watanuki have gotten together in a hurry. I'm letting Kimihiro call the pace XD

**A.B.:** But you hardly know me XDDD Your soul, eh? What a dangerous offer XD LOL. Really? That makes me happy - you have no idea how many times I edit each part before I post it XD Hahaha. That could be seen as picky, depending on how you look at it XD No fear there. You're stuck with me until it's finished XD Yay! I'm so glad to hear that! XD

xXx

AN: Time we got back to see what Fai and Kurogane are up to. And Mokona, too :D

BLOOD & WATER

Kurogane scowled. Almost a month and nothing. No sign of the bastard and not even a dead cat to show that he was still in the city. Though the curious absence of cats and dogs on the streets suggested that the bastard was still active.

The warden viciously stabbed the steak on his plate and turned his glare out onto the other occupants of the room. The people who sat at the rough tables were mostly dock workers and manual labourers, hard men usually more than ready for a fight. But they took one look at the angry warden and the sword that rested propped up against his chair and decided that concentrating on their meals was the best policy.

They'd been questioning people again. The dock worker they had met at the warehouse seemed to have vanished. Everyone they asked confirmed that he had regularly been seen in the vicinity of Lord Hinata's warehouse. But no one had seen him for more than a week. Kurogane's scowl darkened, pinning a thin man sitting nervously at the bar. They'd finally managed to locate the man's house only to find that it had been abandoned. No one had been there for at least a week. It looked like the dock worker knew they were looking for him and was on the run. It was embarrassing that he had managed to elude them for so long.

"Not now, Kuro-bun." Fai's voice came from somewhere near his elbow.

Kurogane looked down to find the ferret blinking coquettishly in that ridiculous way only the sausage could achieve. It gave him a sly grin, setting a little paw on his arm where it rested on the table. "We're in public. But-" Its small eyes glinted evilly and the ferret rubbed its body up along his arm in a disturbingly suggestive way. The ferret resumed its own voice. "-perhaps Mokona can help you."

Kurogane's fork thudded down into the wood of the table, just missing the ferret which twisted out of the way. Lightening quick, it darted onto Kurogane's plate and picked up the last piece of steak in its sharp little teeth. With a garbled noise that sounded disturbingly like a high-pitched giggle, it ran off the edge of the table and darted off into a forest of wood and flesh legs.

Kurogane's hand creaked around the hilt of his sword. He would like nothing more than chase after the thieving sausage and split it half. But after the last time, he doubted that Lord Woodrow would cover the damages.

A choked noise at his side had Kurogane's gaze turning to his partner. Fai was laughing, making no pretence that he was finding the entire thing amusing. Kurogane wondered, not for the first time, how exactly the witch had made the ferret. It was disturbingly like Fai at times. It was almost as if-

Kurogane decided some things were best left unknown. He wrenched the fork from the table and turned back to his plate. With the steak gone only vegetables were left.

Stupid ferret.

He poked at the vegetables and then set down his fork in disgust. There was no point in even bothering. The night was rapidly heading down the toilet.

A noise from Fai had him looking over at the other man.

Seeing he had Kurogane's attention, Fai lifted his arms carelessly up above his head, stretching out his body into a sinuous arc. He grinned at Kurogane, eyes sly. "Mokona won't be back for a while."

Kurogane stood up, plate forgotten. He wasn't feeling hungry, anymore. Not for vegetables.

xXx

Sometime just before midnight a small shadow scampered across the wooden floor of a town house in the Southern Quarter, heading for the stairs that led up to the bedrooms. After its meal of steak, the ferret had gone exploring. Sniffing out interesting scents at the local alehouse, poking into the small plot gardens of the houses that were crammed together in ramshackle order and rummaging through the bits of rubbish left in the narrow streets. Eventually even the discarded fish bones it had found had palled and it came back to the comfort of its home, seeking somewhere safe to sleep.

With a series of muffled thumps, it now ascended the stairs in a line of small bounds. Kurogane had once hoped that the flight of stairs might provide a deterrent but it had become quite clear that the ferret found the steps no problem. Mokona could reach any part of the house if the ferret put its mind to the problem.

The ferret reached the second floor and ran along the corridor in a low sprint. It slowed once it reached the bedroom it was seeking, nudging open the door and peering into the room.

Fai and Kurogane were asleep. The blond lay on his stomach, head lying on Kurogane's shoulder. Kurogane had one arm under his companion, hand curving up to rest at the side of Fai's waist, the other free to grab the sword that sat propped up within arm's reach near the bed.

Mokona quietly crossed the room, navigating the piles of clothes on the floor, and hopped up onto the bed. Kurogane frowned in his sleep but didn't wake up. Not even when the little ferret curled up on the pillow beside the warden's head, a small grinn on its furry face.

xXx

They were at the docks. Again. They had come here practically every day for the last month and it was all depressingly familiar. Kurogane was even getting used to the smell of fish guts. He hated it. Especially this morning.

The day was going from bad to worse. He had woken up to find that Fai was gone and the ferret had sneaked into their bed during the night. It wasn't unusual but it always freaked him out to wake up with its evil little eyes trained on his face.

It didn't help his mood that it easily avoided his lunge and scampered off unharmed for the kitchen. All the while screaming how 'Daddy' been trying to have his way with it. By the time Kurogane had gotten down for breakfast, the evil sausage was begging food off Fai. Even so it still managed to have enough of an appetite to steal from his plate when he was distracted by Fai.

They'd set out for the wharves to arrive just as dawn was breaking. Left with no avenues to pursue the missing dockworker, all they could do was search the area for any clue of his presence or any more carcasses. After a few hours of searching warehouses, Kurogane was feeling distinctly disgruntled.

And it didn't help that the sadistic sausage was having the time of its life.

"Ooh! Kuro-bun!" The ferret twined around Kurogane's ankles and darted off again before the warden's kick could connect. The little clawed feet scraped across the pavement as it darted to the side of the walkway. It soon disappeared into the shadows of the alley formed by the sides of two warehouses.

Kurogane glared after it, hand clamped around the hilt of his sword. Just wait until he got his hands on the voyeuristic furball. They'd see how it fared when he-

The ferret skittered back in front of them, just outside of kicking range. "Fai." It was a deeper voice this time, heavy and slightly out of breath. "I-"

Kurogane scooped up a piece of broken timber and pegged it at the ferret in one fast furious move. The force was such that it splintered as it hit the ground. Mokona, who had dodged with a quick sideways shuffle, giggled.

Fai laughed, wearing a similarly gleeful expression. "You're very good at that. It sound just like Daddy's voice when-"

Kurogane span to give Fai an outraged glare.

The blond smiled and patted him on the shoulder. "It's alright, Daddy." His smile widened into a grin. "We don't mind that you're noisy."

Kurogane lunged but Fai twisted aside, running forward at a careless pace which was deceptively fast. He pointed towards the morning market that was now in full swing further along the docks. "Mokona! Let's buy something for Daddy!" The ferret giggled and loped along at his heels, furry evil on four legs.

They were exactly the same. The witch was going to die.

xXx

Kurogane surveyed the bundles of fish and vegetables in his arms and shot a glare at his partner. "Why the hell am I carrying all this?!"

His mood hadn't improved during the drawn-out shopping expedition where Fai and the ferret had suddenly decided they need one of everything, darting noisily from stall to stall. Not when Kurogane realized Fai had helped himself to the larger warden's money and started spending it with wild abandon. Not when the packages started getting loaded into his arms, all his protests ignored. Especially not now when the stupid ferret was taking advantage of the fact that his arms were full and it was poking through all the packages.

Kurogane watched it with narrow eyes. If it touched the booze he was going to bite it. The ferret caught his gaze and grinned evilly, one paw lifting to hover above the neck of the bottle.

Fai gave one of those charming smiles that had a tendency to send Kurogane's blood pressure through the roof. "Because you're best suited to the job!"

Kurogane shot him a furious glance and Mokona seized the chance to steal a mushroom, jumping down to the ground before Kurogane could do anything. With a garbled giggle, it ran off ahead of them, balance slightly off as it carried a mushroom as big as its head in its mouth. Ignoring Kurogane's fuming, Fai set off happily after the horrid furball.

With a fair amount of grumbling about stupid ferrets, Kurogane reluctantly stomped after them. Watching the cavorting ferret (which had somehow managed to swallow the mushroom whole without choking) and its grinning master, Kurogane wondered what had possessed him to leave the palace guards. It had been boring at times but at least he had been given the respect he deserved. Something that was severely lacking these days.

"No one at the markets had seen him." All of a sudden Fai was serious, his voice belying the smile that still curved his lips.

Kurogane lengthened his strides to keep pace, trying to prevent the packages the ferret had disturbed from falling. He was certain he presented a ridiculous sight juggling packages and trailing after Fai and the ferret but he was trying not to think about that.

Fai cast him a sidelong stare, smile widening momentarily. "It suggests the dock worker isn't in the area anymore."

Kurogane frowned, relieved somewhat that the shopping expedition hadn't just been a chance to embarrass him. A bag suddenly shifted in his arms. The one with the bottle.

Kurogane spotted a nearby crate and sprinted over, setting his burdens down. He let out a sigh of relief once they were safely settled. The bottle was saved.

Fai sauntered up to him, an amused smile on his face. "It's good to see you like your present. Mokona picked it out."

Kurogane pulled out the bottle to look at the label and let out a grunt. For all its other faults (and there were many) the sausage knew good liquor.

There was a scamper of feet and he looked down to see the ferret grinning up at him. Its grin widened at it saw his gaze. Kurogane stared down at it with narrowed eyes. Just what was it up to now?

The ferret darted off again, running onto a nearby wharf. It was a private pier, cordoned off by a length of chain, but that didn't deter the little furry bundle that darted under the barrier. Its claws scratched over the weathered boards and there was a rapid tattoo of hollow thuds as the ferret made its humping run towards a pile of netting and coils of rope. A few moments later its head popped up in the middle of one of the coils and then it was off again, heading off further down to the end of the pier.

Kurogane crossed his arms across his chest and glared down the pier. "What the hell's gotten into it?" The ferret's enthusiasm was only making his own mood darken. The stupid thing seemed to love the wharves.

Fai grinned at him. "Is Daddy-"

A sudden metallic snap rang through the air, cutting through his words.

"Fai!" The cry was more of a scream than a shout. There was a steady stream of noise as a length of chain slid over the side of the pier, links hitting the wood in a fast chink-chink that merged into one sound, before falling to the water below. Mokona suddenly slid into sight, front legs scrabbling frantically as the trap clamped onto one of its back legs slid towards the water. "Kurogane!" The ferret's eyes were wide as it slid over the edge, claws frantically raking for purchase on the worn timbers. And then it disappeared from sight, a large splash following soon after.

Kurogane was already moving as the ferret hit the water. With a hand on one of the wharf posts, he vaulted over the chain barrier that cordoned off the pier. Kurogane was running as soon as he hit the wharf, booted feet thudding on the worn planks as he ran to the spot where the ferret had slid over the side. Moments later he was diving off the edge into the water.

It was freezing. Air escaped Kurogane's lungs at the shock of the cold water that closed around him. Bubbles of air escaped from his mouth and streamed past his face back to the surface in a shining, rippling trail. But Kurogane ignored the protest of his body, eyes searching for the ferret even as his hands reached out in an effort to snag the retreating form.

After the rain of recent days, the filth of the river had been thinned and the flow had slowed, giving Kurogane better visibility in the normally murky depths. He saw the twisting black form descending below him and dove deeper to reach it. He grasped the struggling ferret with one hand even as the other enclosed around cold metal of the chain pulling it down into the water. Weighted resistance pulled at his arm and Kurogane immediately struck for the surface. While whatever was at the other end was enough to pull down a ferret, it wasn't enough to do the same for a man.

Kurogane surfaced with gasp that was echoed by the ferret grasped in his hand. Fai's pale face and wide blue eyes met him. The other man was leaning over the side of the pier, one hand stretched down towards them. Kurogane lifted the half-drowned ferret from the water and handed it up, pulling up more chain with his other hand to stop the pull on its leg. He wrapped the chain around one of the wharf posts several times to tether it then griped the edge of the pier and pulled himself from the water.

The cold air hit him as soon as he left the water but Kurogane ignored it, gritting his teeth to prevent them dancing together in an embarrassing chatter. The stink of the river clung to him and his hair and clothes were plastered to his body in an uncomfortable wrap but Kurogane paid it no mind. Water spread over the faded timbers, turning them a dark grey as he knelt next to Fai.

The ferret was letting out a piteous little whimper as it lay in Fai's hands. With its fur wet it looked tiny, less than half its usual size. But the reduction in volume made it easier to see the vicious trap that had clamped around one of its back legs, steel teeth cutting into flesh and bone. Kurogane took one look at the worried expression on Fai's face and then his hands were clamped around the two halves of the trap's jaws.

"Hold still." The ferret rolled its widened eyes toward him but Kurogane didn't wait for a reply. He wrenched the jaws of the trap open.

The ferret let out a choked cry as the metal teeth released their grip. Fai pulled the wounded leg free and Kurogane let the steel jaws snap shut again, discarding the vicious metal instrument on the wharf beside him. It made a metallic clatter as it bounced on the rough wooden surface.

Fai thrust the ferret into Kurogane's arms and was now looking at the wounded leg. "It's broken." His mouth was a thin line as his fingers traced lightly over the wound. The ferret shuddered, clearly going into shock.

Kurogane put a rough hand on its back as Fai pulled a handkerchief from a pocket and started ripping it into strips. "It'll be okay?" As much as the sausage annoyed him he didn't want it to die. Fai would be heart broken. Kurogane's fingers stroked the wet fur of the ferret shivering under his hand.

Fai didn't answer but began to wrap the wounded leg, the ferret letting out occasional noises of pain. Kurogane gently tugged on one of the little ears to distract it. "We've still got some mushrooms."

The ferret's head turned to regard him with little black eyes. It wasn't giving him an evil look but something that resembled expectant trust. It make Kurogane uncomfortable. He looked away. "I'll fry some for you when we get home." His voice was gruff.

Fai was smiling at him. Kurogane scowled and turned away.

A little paw reached up to touch his arm.

"What?" He hoped the furball wasn't going to say anything sappy.

"And liquor." Its little eyes were bright again. "Mokona wants liquor."

Kurogane scowled. "Only a little bit." The damn sausage would drink the whole lot if he let it. It had a bottomless stomach.

It gave him a small toothy smile.

"You finished?" Kurogane was suddenly uncomfortable with the ferret snuggled comfortably in his arms. It wasn't teasing him or trying to steal any food. If he didn't know better he would have thought it was simply enjoying his company.

Fai finished tying the pieces of cloth, leaving the ferret's leg a stiff white appendage that was sticking out at a weird angle. "It's all I can do for now."

Kurogane handed over the wet furry bundle to Fai, careful of the leg and stood up to pull off his soaking coat. Trying to pretend the last few minutes hadn't happened.

"He's so shy." Fai whispered loudly to the ferret cradled in his arms.

Kurogane stiffened as he heard the words.

"So shy." The ferret was grinning at him, apparently having fully recovered once in Fai's arms.

Kurogane stalked away from them both, muttering under his breath. They were both exactly the same.

He scanned the docks as he checked ginryu at his side. Aside from wet ties, the sword hadn't suffered from the involuntary submergence. He touched the hilt once more in reassurance then set his attention to finding the place where the trap had been set.

It wasn't hard to find. A mushroom with a ferret-sized bite lay tilted on the worn boards.

Kurogane's hands fisted. Goddamn it. The bastard had been watching them. It was the only way for him to know that the sausage had a weakness for mushrooms.

He knelt and picked up the mushroom. His eyes narrowed. It was fresh - it had to have been placed here in the last few hours. He slowly stood, eyes scanning the docks, hand reaching for his sword.

"Kuro-sama?" Fai had followed him, the ferret held in his arms, and now stared at him in quiet concern. The sausage was quiet, too, bright eyes following Fai's to the hand Kurogane rested on ginryu.

Narrow red eyes slid to Fai's face. "Can you sense anything?"

Fai's pale blue eyes widened a fraction before taking on the distant cast they acquired when he was searching for any traces of power. "No." His voice was slightly distracted. "There's nothing here."

Kurogane's hand reluctantly left ginryu's hilt. His mouth was a grim line as his eyes scanned the dock, finally resting on the chain looped around the post.

"Kuro-"

"It was bait." Kurogane tossed the mushroom in an easy arc and Fai caught it, realization sliding into his eyes as he identified the object.

Kurogane had walked over to the edge of the pier and he now eyed the trap that still lay on the rough wooden boards. "The bastard wanted us to come here." He reached for the chain and unwound it from the post before starting to pull it from the water. There was the resistance that he had felt before and Kurogane started to put some extra effort into it, reeling in the wet chain to fall with dull chinks onto the pier beside him. There was a fair-sized pile beside him when the resistance suddenly increased, stopping the rise of chain from the water. With a grunt, Kurogane pulled on it, using the full strength of his body.

It suddenly released and a few seconds later something surfaced in the water beside the pier. A large dark object that bobbed for a moment then slowly revolved as the current caught hold of its mass. Kurogane quickly looped the chain back around the pier post and leaned over the side to snag the object before the flow of the river could snatch it away.

The body's weight was more than doubled with waterlogged clothing that tugged the corpse down. It was only the gases that had built up in the body that kept it at the surface. Kurogane grit his teeth, adjusted his grip and hauled the body from the water.

Limp limbs fell to the dock with a thud. Fish and other creatures had been working at the fingers and face but the cold had otherwise preserved the body. Kurogane grimaced as he recognised what was left of the man's face. It was the missing dock worker. Someone had gotten to him before they had. The fish had been feeding on the socket so only the bone was left to show what had happened. But it was clear a wound had taken out his eye, something slender thrust through the orb and into the thin bone behind into the brain.

Just like the animals at the warehouse.

Fai was looking at the body with a cool gaze, the ferret hiding its head into the crook of his arm. "Well. Now we know why we couldn't find him."

Kurogane glared down at the body, the length of chain piled on the worn planks beside it. The bastard was laughing at them.

xXx

"When I heard one of my wardens jumped into the river, you were the first that came to mind." Alastaire surveyed the still-wet clothes Kurogane was wearing, ignoring the dark look the big man was giving him. "How many uniforms does this make it? Five?"

Kurogane let out a growl which Alastaire ignored, having spotted the packages sitting on the nearby crate. "I see you've been shopping." Alastaire seemed amused by the contents of the bags. "A '56." He was looking at the bottle. "Someone has taste."

"Mokona!" The ferret was bright-eyed, apparently having forgotten the recent gruesome discovery in favour of the new arrival. It always got on appallingly well with the chief warden.

"Really." Alastaire grinned, flashing teeth. "Maybe I should take you with me next time I go drinking." His pale eyes were amused. "If Kurogane would allow it. He seems rather attached to you."

Fai intervened before Kurogane could strangle his superior. "Lord Woodrow."

The chief warden's smile disappeared. He turned away from the packages with a disappointed sigh. "Let's get it over with then."

They walked further down the pier, stopping at the covered body of the dock worker. It had been dragged out of sight behind a pile of ropes and covered over with a blanket. The chief warden cast glance at the two wardens before kneeling down beside it and flinging back the shielding blanket.

For a few moments Alastaire simply stared down at the body lying across the pier. "The idea was to find him and bring him back alive." His voice was slightly distracted as leaned down to get a closer look at the defleshed eye socket.

Kurogane glowered at kneeling man, arms crossed tightly over his chest.

"A week. Maybe more." The chief warden's voice was business-like. "It's hard to tell this time of year." Alastaire abruptly stood, eyes sweeping up and down the pier. A pair of wardens stood at the chained-off end, warding off any curious passers-by and three more were searching the water under the pier with long poles, searching for any more surprises. "An abandoned wharf this time. Our killer has taste." His pale eyes didn't reflect the amusement in his voice. "Did you find anything on the body?"

Kurogane's eyes lowered briefly to the body before coming up to meet the chief warden's pale gaze. "A few sinkers. He was fishing the first time we saw him."

Alastaire's eyes narrowed. "So it's likely he was doing the same before he died."

Mokona had hidden its face as soon as the body had been revealed and now Fai stroked a hand across the ferret's back. "Most people knew where he could be found."

Alastaire frowned, his eyes falling on Mokona, still held in Fai's arms. He took in the white wrappings on ferret's leg before spotting the trap still lying on the worn timbers near the wardens searching the water. "It's an unusual way to get our attention." His pale gaze fell on Kurogane. "You think you've been watched?" The words were casual but the chief warden's manner was anything but.

There was a low sound as Kurogane's hand tightened around the hilt of his sword. "I'd say it was obvious at this point." It was practically a growl. It was obvious that Kurogane didn't like the idea at all.

"But you didn't notice." Alastaire's voice was thoughtful rather than mocking. "That's not like you." He cast a glance at Fai. "Either of you."

Alastaire pulled out a coin from his pocket as he surveyed the body once more. "Send me your report before the end of the day. I'll be seeing His Highness tomorrow." He cast them both a distracted glance. "Deliver it in person."

He didn't wait for acknowledgement of the order but stared out at the warehouses lined along the quay, the small crowd of people who had gathered to stare at wardens. The coin flashed through his fingers. "This is starting to get annoying. Let's hope he had the good taste to leave the city."

xXx

I wouldn't count on it XD


	43. Mocking Bird

MOCKING BIRD

"When I suggested breakfast, I meant breakfast. As in silver service and all the glory that attends our high status. Not this." A languid hand lifted to wave at their austere surroundings.

The two men were in the Southern Ward's records room. Except for the shelves that lined the walls and the low table at which they sat, the room was empty. Tatami mats covered the floor and the sliding doors leading out to the veranda were left open, revealing the garden beyond. But other than that there were no decorations, the room was bare even of the scroll paintings or flower arrangements that were typical of traditional rooms. There were no cushions either, both of them were simply sitting on the floor, bare feet tucked up underneath them. It was a far cry from the luxuriously-appointed dining rooms that were used by most nobility to entertain their guests.

Pale eyes flickered over the man's companion, taking in the plain kimono he wore. "The least you could do is get changed for the occasion."

Doumeki didn't look up from the report he was reading. "I wasn't aware that current company required it."

Alastaire mock-winced. "You wound me. After all the effort I went to." He gestured at his own immaculate outfit.

Gold eyes flicked up to survey the lord's attire. Alastaire was dressed to impress. He wore a suit of pale grey, the darker jacket open to reveal the fine embroidery of his silk vest. It was a scene of a mountainous landscape, coils of mists swirling around the upper peaks. It was a not-so-subtle reminder of the Woodrow line's origins, the mountain regions of the east, a resource-rich area which still played a large role in the empire's eastern trade. The mist pattern was repeated in black and silver over the sleeves of his jacket, a reminder of his position as chief warden of the Southern Quarter. Alastaire had clearly dressed with the aim to state his current position of power. "You're off to court?"

A sly smile curved Alastaire's lips. His eyes were calculating as his coin started flipping through his fingers. "The ladies are getting restless. They've noticed that His Highness has been busy of late." His gaze flicked to Doumeki. "You should hear some of the rumours that have been flying round."

Doumeki had turned back the report. "I've heard them."

Alastaire's eyes narrowed, not pleased that the other man was taking it so lightly. "And so has Her Majesty."

Doumeki's eyes stopped moving. The report was set carefully back down onto the table. "You've been summoned." It wasn't a question.

"Earlier in the week." The coin flipped between his fingers, travelling between his fingers and back again. "No doubt I'll get a scolding for visiting you first." A sudden smile. "But who can resist your charms?"

The prince wasn't amused. He ignored the dig. "What are you going to say?"

Alastaire grinned, coin arching up into the air. "What I always do. That you're working me to the bone and buried in your duties as Keeper." An amused glance. "I'm not even going to mention your latest hobby."

Doumeki's hand fisted on the table and he levelled a dark stare at the other man.

It didn't have the desired affect. In fact Alastaire only seemed to be amused by the warning. "Well, what else do you want me to call it?" His smile suddenly vanished. "You're not exactly making things easy on yourself. First the auction and now the mysterious excursions you keep going on. The whole court's abuzz." His eyes met Doumeki's. "And now the queen is involved."

Doumeki's eyes flickered.

Alastaire leaned back with a small sigh. "I'll do what I can." His gaze lowered to the coin resting between his fingers. It began twisting in a repetitive flash of bronze and his mocking smile made an abrupt reappearance. "I'll give the ladies something else to concentrate on."

"What about Harriet?"

The coin started flipping again, rising up into the air. "Apparently it was me or the new dress." Alastaire shrugged. "I didn't fancy being seen with a woman who looked like a moulting bird." His pale eyes met Doumeki's, mouth curving into a charming smile. "Suffice to say I am now in the market again. Searching for a wife to secure the glorious Woodrow line." His lips quirked, belying the serious look in his eyes. "No doubt it will cause quite a fuss."

Doumeki's mouth twitched. No doubt. With Alastaire involved, it was a certainty.

Alastaire's gaze fell to the report lying on the table. "So. What do you think?"

Doumeki glanced down at the neat pile of pages. It was the summary compiled from the weekly reports sent in from each of the warden houses. "Nothing out of the ordinary." What passed for the ordinary these days. But aside from the strange sightings, scatter of accidents and random explosive rows, things were quiet. Almost too quiet. It was almost like the city was holding its breath. Doumeki frowned. "What about the quay?"

The coin stopped flipping. "A dead end." Alastaire's pale eyes were slightly out of focus as he recalled the details. "The dock worker was found for all the good it did us." Alastaire's mouth tightened. "The real man's probably long gone by now." But he didn't sound as if he believed it.

Doumeki's eyes lifted from the report. "Keep Kurogane and Fai on it."

"Kurogane's going to love that." Alastaire's smile held no humour. "His ferret got injured and he's out for blood. I doubt I could stop him at this point."

But Doumeki wasn't listening. A thought had occurred to him. "Where was the body found?"

Alastaire's eyes sharpened at the tone of the prince's voice. That slow contemplative tone usually meant that Doumeki's brain was turning over furiously. "At a small merchant's wharf. It was weighted down under the pier."

"Beneath the water." The words were spoken slowly.

Alastaire waited for him to continue but Doumeki had apparently slid into some sort of reverie. "Is it significant?" He finally asked.

Doumeki frowned and glanced out into the garden. "Perhaps."

A complex expression crossed Alastaire's face. If anyone had seen it they could have been forgiven for thinking it a cross between concern and exasperation. After a few minutes, when it became clear that Doumeki wasn't going to say any more, Alastaire sighed. "You're getting more and more like Haruka every day." He ignored the startled look Doumeki wore at that remark and focused on straightening his sleeves. "I've got to go or your mother will strip me of my title." The words were joking but Alastaire wasn't smiling. "I'd prefer to not to become a pauper." His voice softened, eyes narrowed as he stared at the coin held motionless between his fingers. "I wouldn't know what to do with myself."

He suddenly the coin into the pocket of his richly embroidered jacket and his voice took on his customary mocking tone. "I brought you a gift. I heard you were looking for early histories and borrowed one."

"Borrowed?" Doumeki was slightly sceptical. There weren't many of the chronicles in existence and none of the ones that remained were likely to be loaned to the current Lord Woodrow.

A grin stretched Alastaire's lips. "Exactly. The chief warden of the Southern Quarter wouldn't stoop so low as to steal anything." He got up. "I gave it to Riku." There was a flash of teeth as his grin suddenly widened. "The old chap is probably checking it for signs of ownership." He looked amused rather than offended. "Not that he'll find any."

He turned to leave the room but paused before exiting the door leading out to the veranda. "It was father's." And before Doumeki reply to that, Alastaire was gone.

Doumeki remained staring out at the garden for a long time before he finally roused himself to go seek out Riku.

xXx

Ah, what fun XD Concealing Mists, the next instalment, will be up at the end of the month. Hopefully XD


	44. Concealing Mists I

Anonymous Readers Replies:

**andchipzz: **It helps that I know where it's going - every step is important ;D I'm glad you like it - I'm enjoying it immensely XD LOL, well epic sounds right. Romance too, I suppose XD Thanks! What a wonderful compliment! Of course! We haven't got to Masqued Intentions yet - it's set a bit further along in the time line XD

**A.B.: **Good books are like glue - it's hard to get them out of your hands :D Ahaha. Now I know how to handle you XD Not quite a million, but I certainly try to catch what I can XD But there's always some that slip through D: /nod/ I hate when that happens - when you're paying for something, you expect for it to be edited properly. Thanks for catching that! I'll take your word for it XD Thanks! I'm glad you're enjoying where it's going :) No problems :) They'll be showing up more and more frequently as we go along. /blush/ Well, it wasn't soon but hopefully this will do ;)

AN: Terribly late, I know. It couldn't be avoided, I'm afraid. Anyway, back to the story. Doumeki had just received that history from Alastaire (who's going to receive hell from his aunt when she realizes it's missing XD). So what can you expect from this instalment? More answers. For Doumeki and for you ;D Everyone, really. Pay attention, my dears :D There's a lot going on here XD

ENTWINING FATES:

CONCEALING MISTS

I

Of all the things that could be said about Alastaire, there was one fact that couldn't be denied. He always managed to lay hands on something that couldn't be found elsewhere.

The history he had provided was a good example. It was not only one of the few remaining copies that dated back several centuries, it was probably the _only_ complete copy of its kind in existence. It was complete and unabridged, containing information that was omitted even from the history kept at the Southern Ward. The Woodrows, whose eccentricity had bred true through the generations, did not shrink from the misdeeds of their ancestors. Instead they had lovingly copied and recopied their histories, immortalizing their ancestors' indiscretions along with that of every other prominent figure in the empire's history.

Doumeki wouldn't be surprised if Alastaire had already started on his memoirs to commemorate the more embarrassing moments in the lives of his noble peers.

The history he held in his hands was a public embarrassment for his own relations. In particular those of his mother's line. Instead of the neat tale of a capital established peacefully and without opposition, he found a morass of opposing political agendas and armed conflict. It had taken several years for the situation to be resolved and that had been largely the result of the actions of one man who served under the king at the time.

A commoner known as Clow Reed. A man later given the title of Lord Watanuki in honour of the date of the city's founding. He had been instrumental in settling what were termed 'local disputes' and involved in planning the layout of the capital. It was never quite clear how he had come to his prominence within the king's service but his actions had been critical. A service for which he had been rewarded not only his title but the hand of the king's first daughter.

After that he was a prominent figure in the royal court. But once most of the building had been completed, Clow had retreated to the lands that had been granted to him in the south. The reason stated for his sudden withdrawal from the spotlight was deteriorating health. His presence within the capital, however, still continued sporadically.

While publicly lauded, though, not everyone approved of the favour shown to the new lord. Barely three years after he had retired to his estate his lands were attacked. The lord and his lady survived but there was a brief reference to Hikideshi Takemura, Clow's right-hand man. He was mentioned as perishing in the ensuing battle.

A clear fiction since the man still resided in the Watanuki mansion to this very day. Though how the man was still alive after nearly a thousand years was a question Doumeki would have liked answered.

The instigators of the attack, a group of nobles and their followers, were eventually arrested. Punishments ranging through execution to banishment were carried out. The nobles were stripped of their titles and were subsequently unnamed in the accounts. Nor were their followers mentioned except for the most generic of terms. The feel of the entire incident was of a crime so heinous that none of the instigators' names, let alone the details of what had happened, were to be spoken. As if not talking about it could somehow erase what had happened.

It must have been serious if even the Woodrows had forborne to give any details.

Doumeki had continued to read in hopes of some clue to what had occurred, a passing reference that might have shed some light on the matter. But there was nothing, not even information about . After the trial, there was no special mention of Lord Watanuki or his wife.

Carefully setting aside the volume, Doumeki had sent Riku to retrieve one of the lists of heraldry, to trace the noble bloodlines. The marriage was still there, written in abbreviated shorthand. The sun dragon which had been Reed's personal crest incorporated with the symbol of the royal house.

And that explained the Watanuki crest. A gold dragon wrapped around a pink cherry blossom. Doumeki had noticed that Kimihiro eschewed the cherry blossom in favour of the dragon and he now frowned. It was almost as if he was hiding the connection he had to the ancient ruling line of the empire. It was a curious action when several noble houses had similar links in lineage.

Doumeki's gaze fell to the drawer that held the gift he intended to give to Kimihiro. His resolution had only grown firmer in the following month. Kimihiro was gradually opening up to him. Had even recently shown some signs that further advances might not be entirely unwelcome. It was enough to give him hope that Kimihiro would come to regard him as more than just a colleague, a friend. It was slow work but Doumeki was used to being patient to achieve his goals.

There was a knock at the door. Doumeki looked up to see Riku opening the door.

The aide bowed in apology for the abrupt entrance, "Your Highness." He straightened, "Lord Watanuki is here to see you." After the first time, Riku had never used Kimihiro's slighting title. He seemed resigned to the fact that Doumeki was determined to pursue the connection and the aide was doing his best to preserve some sense of decorum.

Doumeki glanced at the glass doors. It was still dark outside; the winter dawn not yet arrived. To say it was early was an understatement. Even though Kimihiro kept weird hours, it was still strange to have him come to the Southern Ward at such a time.

"Let him in." It was likely that Aurion was the cause of Kimihiro's sudden arrival. Lord Grantham had delivered the shimme late the previous day and Doumeki had been expecting Kimihiro to show up. Even so Doumeki couldn't help the small flicker of hope that the visit had been in part to see him.

xXx

Doumeki was surprised to see him at such an early hour. Or at least that was what Kimihiro interpreted the blink and long stare to mean. As the silence lengthened, he began to suspect that the prince was still half asleep. No matter that he had been assured that Doumeki was awake and was willing to see him.

"I heard that Aurion arrived yesterday." Kimihiro looked around Doumeki's study. It was much the way it had been the last time he had visited the Southern Ward. The same wide doors with small panes of glass that provided a view to the garden beyond. The same piles of paper that showed he had interrupted the Keeper's paperwork once more. And on the desk, exactly where it had been the last time, was Haruka's arrow. His gaze lingered on the broken shaft and the pale fletching before he realized Doumeki was watching him with a narrow gaze.

"I offered to ensure that he was properly settled in." Kimihiro crossed his arms, irritated at the prince's continuing silence. It wasn't as if he had simply dropped in unexpectedly (something he put up with all the time). Doumeki had agreed – he just hadn't set a time. "Unless you would rather that I didn't?"

That finally got a response. Doumeki's gaze rose from the arrow to his face. "You're early." With the tone of his voice it could be a complaint or simply observation. But Kimihiro knew Doumeki well enough to see it as the question it was.

"It would have been yesterday," Kimihiro's arms relaxed their fold, "but it's best that I'm not seen here too often." He cast a glance at Doumeki to see the pale eyes fixed on him, the prince's eyebrows lowered in a slight frown that threatened to deepen.

Kimihiro found himself explaining further. He didn't want Doumeki to get the idea that he was avoiding being seen with him for the wrong reasons. It was a caution for his safety rather than personal preference. He had reluctantly come to the conclusion that when he wasn't being actively annoying, Doumeki wasn't entirely bad company.

Not that he would have usually socialized with Doumeki. Their association wasn't appropriate. Kimihiro frowned. That wasn't quite right either. The fact of the matter was that for all of his annoying habits, Doumeki had stayed with him. And while Kimihiro appreciated the gesture, he wasn't going to let their association be the source of trouble for the Keeper.

"My situation is politically precarious." That was a slight understatement but it was the best way to put it. Any more might lead Doumeki to interfere and that was the last thing he wanted. "It's wiser that you're not linked to me more than you already are." Despite the precautions he had made, it would be idiocy to think that everyone was obvious. He could only hope for it not to become public knowledge.

Doumeki was still frowning. Dressed in his kimono and sitting behind the familiar desk, Kimihiro had a sudden memory of his predecessor. That day Haruka had been frowning down at the letter he had received. It had vanished into a smile as soon as Kimihiro had entered the room but it had stuck in Kimihiro's mind despite what had happened later. Haruka had been dead barely three months later.

Kimihiro reached for his left wrist, feeling the thin links of the gold bracelet press into his flesh. The same _wasn't_ going to happen to Doumeki. Kimihiro was going to ensure that. He wasn't here just for Aurion. He was checking the Ward.

Kimihiro was uneasy after searching through the library. Compiled over centuries, it was one of the most comprehensive collections of accounts and treatises on inhabitants of the second world. After talking with Yuuko, he had been chasing down information on what could be loose within the wards of the city. While Hikideshi was intimately familiar with all of the entries and had helped him search, Kimihiro had found nothing that would explain what was happening. The powerful goryo and elementals which had the intelligence and means to stalk through the city had been expelled long ago. And the current modernisation had not been gathering force long enough for any more to form within unchecked. Not with the wards still holding as they did.

And it was clear that they did hold. If the wards had fallen, They would have arrived. But it was certain that something was shifting. More cursed objects were turning up and accidents happening that should never have occurred. Kimihiro had to face the fact that it seemed he was facing a human enemy. One who was trying to pull down the wards from the inside. It was unthinkable that someone was deliberately trying to pull down the city's protections. But Kimihiro had learned that people were rarely motivated by the good of others when they saw some sort of gain for themselves.

But even though a human agent was the most plausible cause, Kimihiro couldn't help but entertain one fearful possibility. That despite the state of the wards, something _had_ slipped in, against all the odds. Something he had learned to fear. It shouldn't have been possible but it _could_ have happened. If He had found the right vessel and cloaked himself in human flesh.

Kimihiro felt ill simply thinking about it. For Him to be moving through the city…Whatever the cause, he had to counter such a move.

His priority was ensuring that Doumeki and the Southern Ward were safe. Happily installing the shimme within the bounds of the Ward was as good as having a taint detector on hand. If anything was wrong, Aurion would sense it and Kimihiro would know accordingly.

Kimihiro came back to himself with the realization that Doumeki was staring at him. It was hard to identify what expression the Keeper was wearing but it made Kimihiro uneasy. He was starting to think that maybe the early visit had been a bad idea. Perhaps he should have waited until after breakfast. "I can come back later, if you already had plans." It was clear that he _had_ made a mistake. Doumeki wasn't as pleased to see him as he had expected.

Doumeki was still staring at him. Or more precisely his mouth. "What?" Did he have something stuck between his teeth? He was getting embarrassed just at the thought. His hand rose to his mouth. "Is something wrong?"

Doumeki blinked, suddenly looking away. "No." He suddenly stood. "I'll take you to the stables."

Kimihiro followed him out with the unsettling feeling that he had just missed something.

xXx

Despite the early hour, the second enclosure of the Southern Ward wasn't quiet. Workers were already starting for the day, beginning preparations for the activities that would be carried out during the daylight hours. But there were still few around to see the curious procession that made its way to the stables.

Two men walked through the empty yard outside the stables. Doumeki had changed into a warmer suit. In different circumstances he would have just gone out in his kimono, an act he suspected would appal Kimihiro. He'd have to do it in warmer weather if he got the chance.

Kimihiro was mostly silent, hunched up against the cold. It was rather mild by Doumeki's standards but it was clear that Kimihiro wasn't used to the weather. Doumeki was trying not to look at him too much. He could tell that Kimihiro was getting confused by his behaviour but the truth was he was having difficulty not reaching out and touching the lord. Now that Kimihiro's moment of weakness had passed, Doumeki had to consider what Kimihiro's acceptance had meant.

Doumeki didn't want to be accepted as anything but himself. He wanted Kimihiro to see him as he was, not as a substitute or a temporary comfort. And the only way to do that was to keep trying as he was, angry glares and all. If Kimihiro still accepted him when he was at his full capacities, when he wasn't vulnerable, then it would be because he accepted Doumeki.

And there was no time like the present.

Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro. The lord wasn't paying much attention to him, looking at their surroundings. He had regained his coat, a plain black affair, and a hastily wrapped scarf round his neck. Doumeki reached out and flicked one end of the straggling scarf over Kimihiro's shoulder.

Kimihiro turned his head to give him a glare but otherwise didn't protest.

Doumeki hid a smile. So far, so good.

The Southern Ward's stables were considerably smaller than Lord Grantham's. While the lord's stables had housed several hundred horses, the number lodged within the Ward was considerably less. It housed all the horses used by the Southern Ward, from the heavy teams that were used to bring in wagons of supplies and the sturdy quarter horses that were used by the Ward's messengers. But there were also horses kept for the Keeper's personal use: the high-bred teams that pulled the Doumeki carriages and a number of riding horses that belonged to the Keeper.

Aurion had been stabled in one of the stalls reserved for Doumeki's personal mounts. Doumeki's horses were given the pride of place in the stables, housed in the large stalls that had been constructed for shimme in times past. Three of the stalls were occupied now and only one of the horses was a shimme.

There was a white mare in the first stall. She had been Haruka's last mount and was reaching her last years. Her eyes fixed on Kimihiro as the two men approached and she set her nose into his palm as he stopped at the stall. Doumeki's eyes narrowed as he took in the sight. It was obvious that she knew Kimihiro.

Kimihiro saw his glance and immediately gained that defensive look that Doumeki was all too familiar with.

xXx

Doumeki was regarding him with that narrow look again. The look that shouted out his suspicions. And he had cause this time. He'd just revealed how close to Haruka he had been.

Perhaps it had been a mistake to reveal he knew Yuoko but the thought of ignoring the sweet-tempered mare only made Kimihiro angry. The situation wasn't her fault. So Kimihiro strangled his anger and continued to stroke a hand down her long nose. "She looks in good health." He commented and it came out normally enough, even pleasant.

Doumeki had a hand in one pocket. But cast Kimihiro a glance at his words. "She belonged to my grandfather." _But you already knew that._ The unspoken words were heavy in the air. A barely concealed challenge.

"I only visited the Southern Ward a few times when your grandfather was Keeper." It hadn't been wise to be seen here often. "His Grace introduced us during one of my visits." One of the early ones when the older man had shown a shy child an awkward filly. He'd actually ridden her once or twice but Doumeki didn't need to know that.

Doumeki was staring at him, unblinking. Silently asking for more information.

Kimihiro kept his eyes on Yuoko, who stood silently, her dark eyes fixed on him. No recriminations, no questions, just silent acceptance. "He was a good man." One of the best. "A man who had time for everyone, no matter who they were." And that was a virtue that had lead to his death.

"Someone like you?" Doumeki was watching him closely.

Kimihiro flinched, even though it was true. He knew Doumeki didn't mean it the way it had sounded. Probably wasn't even the aware of the way it had sounded. "Yes."

Doumeki had finally fished out a peppermint and held it out. Kimihiro stared at it for a moment, not quite sure whether it was meant for him or Yuoko, before picking it up from Doumeki's hand, their fingers brushing.

"I never saw you at the funeral." Doumeki's words stopped him before he could offer the peppermint to the mare. It was a questioning of how close he had been to the former Keeper - whether he had gone to the last rites would have been a definite indicator (1) - and Kimihiro had been expecting it.

But the words still cut Kimihiro to the quick. "I was ill." So ill he couldn't have crawled from his bed if he wanted to. But he would have if he had known when the rites were being held. "I would have been there if I had been able."

He held out the peppermint to Yuoko, glad that there was no betraying tremor in his hand. She lipped it from his palm like the sweet lady she was and Kimihiro left her to it. After one last pat, he turned and continued down the aisle, leaving Doumeki to follow as he willed. Looking for Aurion and relief from topics that were still painful.

The shimme colt wasn't in the next stall. The horse inside had turned away, presenting its glossy, finely-shaped glossy rump to the stall door. Just as antisocial as its owner, apparently. Kimihiro didn't even bother stopping but kept walking down the aisle.

Aurion was at the end. A dark head turned at their approach, revealing the tell-tale stripe that trailed down the elegantly-formed head. Ears pricked and eyes alert, there was no trace of the apathy or listlessness he had displayed before. If anything he was livelier than the other horses they had seen. Aurion was leaning out as far as he could from his stall, clearly happy to see them.

A glance aside at Doumeki provided part of the answer for the colt's excitement. Doumeki had a hand in a pocket again, reaching for more peppermints. Kimihiro almost sighed but didn't say anything. If Doumeki wanted to feed the shimme sweets, it was up to him.

He looked over the colt, taking in Aurion's condition. His coat was better, regaining some of its former glossy shine, and he wasn't as thin as the first time Kimihiro had seen him. Lord Grantham had clearly done his best to reverse the colt's state before he was sent to the Southern Ward. Kimihiro had no doubt that now he was in the Southern Ward and being fed a steady diet of peppermints, Aurion would make a full recovery.

Kimihiro took in Doumeki's hand stroking down the colt's neck as he offered a peppermint with the other. He watched the sight quietly, a strange feeling slowly coming to life. Despite his irritating quirks, Doumeki possessed a strange gentleness that was his own. Not Haruka's and certainly not his mother's.

A small movement in the corner of his eye had Kimihiro turning his head. A young man was standing in the shadow of the lanterns hung up along the stable row, the bucket in one hand suggesting he was a stable worker. He ducked his head as he noticed Kimihiro's gaze, tucking his long gangling body shyly against a stall.

Doumeki had noticed that his attention was elsewhere. His pale gaze flicked to the young man Kimihiro was watching. "Kouki."

The man shyly took a few steps forward and gave a small bow. "Your Grace." His words were slow, as if he was thinking through each syllable.

"Kouki has been set in charge of Aurion." Doumeki commented quietly. His voice took on a gentler edge, like one would use to calm a wary animal. He set a light hand on Kimihiro's shoulder. "Kouki, this is Lord Watanuki. He's come to see Aurion."

The young man's eyes flickered to Kimihiro and he gave another bow. His eyes flicked nervously from Kimihiro to Aurion, hand tightening its grip on the bucket he held.

Kimihiro noticed the look. "You like him, Kouki?"

Kouki's eyes flicked back to Kimihiro. He gave a slow shy smile and nodded.

A gentle smile softened Kimihiro's face. "I'm sure he'll be very happy with you to take care of him."

Another shy nod. Kouki lifted the bucket in his hand. "I have to go get his breakfast." With another small bow he continued past them down the aisle.

Kimihiro watched him go. The look he gave Doumeki held more warmth when he turned back to the Keeper. He hadn't really considered the people Doumeki had in his employ. That Doumeki was familiar with one his stableboys, his name and his nature, suggested the antisocial Keeper kept a close eye on all of his people. Doumeki might not have been the most outgoing of individuals but he did look out for those around him.

Doumeki interpreted his look as a question. "Kouki came with me from the palace." His hand, in a seemingly idle gesture, rested on Kimihiro's forearm.

It was the third time (not that he'd been counting exactly) Doumeki had touched him since they had entered the stables. He looked down at the hand on his arm then looked up at Doumeki. "It there a reason you keep doing that?"

Doumeki didn't answer the question. His pale eyes fell to his hand where it rested on Kimihiro's arm and then rose back to his face. "Is it bothering you?"

Of course it was bothering him. Since when did Doumeki start touching him at every given opportunity? It was distracting. Not annoying exactly but it kept pulling his attention to Doumeki every few minutes. A reminder that he was close by and... He was somewhat appalled to realize the sensation was somewhat pleasant.

He glared. "Don't do it all the time." The last thing he wanted was for Doumeki to think that he could do whatever he wanted.

xXx

But don't stop entirely. Doumeki smiled internally.

Kimihiro had entered the stall with one last glare and Doumeki, feeling better than he had all morning, watched him from the door. He could tell that Kimihiro was still somewhat irritated - it showed in his movements and voice.

"This stall was purposefully built to house a shimme-" Kimihiro's words were interrupted when Aurion nudged him sharply in the chest. The colt was livelier that he had been in his former residence. One of Kimihiro's hand's rose to Aurion's neck, while the other reached up to rub between his eyes, automatically acceding to his wishes for contact. "-So he'll be buffered from any side effects arising through his blood line. All his food and bedding is encompassed within a purifying ward."

Doumeki followed Kimihiro's gaze to lines that arched up across the supporting beams holding up the roof. They were carved with twisting lines that met with a ward carved and painted on the ceiling. A design that was highlighted in greens and blues, curving lines that reflected the warding lines like a stream of water or quick-flowing mist. A similar ward was on the stall floor, now covered with hay. "But?" Kimihiro hadn't come to admire the stable wards.

"You'll still have to keep a close eye on him. He still hasn't recovered fully." Kimihiro's eyes were serious. "If he shows any signs of relapse call me immediately."

Doumeki nodded and, after one last pat, Kimihiro stepped back and started looking Aurion over. "I'll check to see how much taint remains." He shot Doumeki a distracted look as Aurion enthusiastically nudged him again. "It would help if you distracted him for a few moments."

That turned out to be an understatement. As the lord moved around the stall, surveying the shimme from different angles, the colt became more curious. Aurion kept turning his head to watch Kimihiro, every so often reaching out to lip at his coat. It was obvious that he found the lord fascinating. Doumeki sympathised but distracted him with more peppermints. Kimihiro wouldn't thank either of them if he was covered in horse drool.

"Lord Tatsuya has been asking for a renewal of the winter festival." Doumeki kept his eyes fixed on Kimihiro as he fed another peppermint to the colt.

Kimihiro was peering at Aurion's legs, one hand resting on the colt's back. "Lord Tatsuya has been petitioning for years." His reply was distracted. He didn't seem very interested in the matter.

It was not the reaction Doumeki had expected. "I haven't given him an answer."

Kimihiro slowly turned. "The festivals were abolished." His eyes were wary. He seemed curiously reluctant to discuss the situation. "Re-establishing them would take either a royal edict," Kimihiro's eyes darkened, "or a resurgence of the populace." It was clear that he thought both unlikely.

Doumeki was quiet for a moment. "If the festivals were reinstated would it help to counter recent events?"

Kimihiro was frowning. He gently pushed aside Aurion's questing nose and slid out of the stall, letting Doumeki close the door behind him. "Perhaps. It would depend on several factors-" Aurion was lipping his hair at this point and Kimihiro guided the big head down over his shoulder in an effort to distract him.

"My lord."

The familiar voice had Doumeki turning to find the source.

It was Riku. That he had come himself rather than send a servant, suggested that the interruption was urgent.

The aide took in the situation with a glance and then turned his attention to the prince. "A messenger just delivered a dispatch." Riku's eyes slid sideways to Kimihiro who was still occupied with Aurion.

"What is it?" Doumeki didn't mind if Kimihiro heard.

Riku looked somewhat resigned as if he had expected that but answered the question. "A missive from Lord Woodrow. It appears that one of Lady Leighton's servants went missing yesterday at the gala held by Lady Durham at Highbridge." Riku paused. "They've gathered a number of the wardens to begin searching for the young woman."

Highbridge was one of the two large gardens in the Southern Quarter open to the public. While many of the institutions under the Southern Ward's governance had been parcelled away over the last century, the two public parks remained under the authority of the Southern Ward. Mainly because they entailed expenses for their maintenance rather than conveying a sense of privilege – it was a duty that wasn't enticing enough for it to have been wrested from the traditional Keepers' authority. As a result the parks remained in law as lands belonging to the cardinal Wards and any business in the gardens still required the formality of seeking the Keeper's permission.

By rights Alastaire should have informed Doumeki _before_ plans were made to search the area.

"Did you say Highbridge?" Kimihiro was looking up, one ungloved hand still resting forgotten on the colt's dark hide. But Aurion wasn't protesting. He was still, ears pricked up alertly as if he had sensed some possible threat.

Riku inclined his head. "I did, Lord Watanuki. The maid went missing in Highbridge Park."

Doumeki was staring at Kimihiro, taking in the alert pose Aurion had adopted. "It's a short carriage ride." It was a question of sorts. Whether it was something to be alarmed at.

Kimihiro stepped away from the stall. "I'll go with you."

It was then. Doumeki's eyes narrowed. It wasn't a supernatural matter yet Kimihiro seemed determined to go, despite the fact that the park was a public space where they would both be seen together. Something the lord usually avoided. It must be something more than the disappearance of a servant woman.

"Riku. Order the carriage to be readied. Lord Watanuki and I will be going out."

Riku's eyes ran over both of them, his face becoming impassive. "Yes, Your Highness."

xXx

1) The last rites (and this is referring to the preparation of the body, rituals carried out separate from the ceremony said for the mourners) are thought to be fraught with dangers. Death is the passage from one world to the next and the transition is said to attract the attention of evil spirits.

xXx

Ahahaha. Awkward courtship indeed XD Doumeki's got the ingredients right (visits, gifts, physical contact etc), it's just the way he goes about it XD

And no, Aurion's fascination with Kimihiro doesn't spring from nothing. Kimihiro's like a walking chum barrel for spirits and he has a similar effect on creatures that are linked to the second world. There's a good reason for it that I'm not going into it now but here's a hint: What did Aurion do the first time they met? Or more precisely what was he most interested in about Kimihiro?

xXx


	45. Concealing Mists II

ENTWINING FATES:

CONCEALING MISTS

II

Highbridge Park was one of the most popular picnicking spots in the capital. On a sunny afternoon the gravel drive would be infested with nobles out for a turn in their open carriage, determined to see and be seen. The younger and more adventurous would spread blankets on the lush grass near the canal or pole themselves along the muddy stretch in hired boats. It was in short one of the leisure centres for the nobility. A playground where status and politics could pass as idle amusement.

But the nobility were not the only people who took advantage of fair weather. As a public park, Highbridge was open to all citizens of the city no matter their status. As the nobility indulged in their public preening, the commons explored the quieter reaches of the gardens. On any given day there were servants out for a stroll on their day off; young beaus, clerks and shop assistants, staring out onto the waters from one of the many secluded bridges; and governesses taking their charges out to enjoy the fresh air. There were even the less savoury visitors that were resolutely ignored: the drunks that stumbled out the gates early in the morning and the young women who came out just before dusk, waiting for the right carriage to come down the road. On any given day the park was normally a hive of activity.

But there was no such thing occurring at the moment. It was just after dawn and the park was practically deserted as the black carriage rolled through the ornate gates and onto the gravel road that wound deeper into the park. It was a nondescript vehicle and only someone who knew the owner would have realized who ventured out into the park at such an early hour.

The team of chestnuts trotted briskly along the road with only the plume of air rising from their nostrils, the muted jingle of harness and the sound of gravel under steel-rimed wheels to mark their passage. But even these noises were deadened by the thick fog that overlaid the grounds of the park. The trees either side of the gravel road and the sheet of ivy covering their roots were partly obscured, giving the path a ghostly feel, like the carriage was entering another realm.

Highbridge had been created in the Eastern style (1). While the local design of gardens tended to comprise of precisely-constructed landscapes, Highbridge followed a more free-flowing design. While every tree and plant had been carefully chosen, the effect was not one of artifice but tended wilderness. The careful maintenance of the gardens concentrated on the appearance of natural growth, a vision that paradoxically required a great deal of effort to sustain. The myriad of paths and drives that wound through the park were a journey to points of interest rather than a constantly shifting view that deserved proper contemplation.

After a few minutes of travel along the fogged road, the carriage rolled to a stop at one of the lookout points that were dotted around the park. This one was set on a slight rise that overlooked the river and was near a small gazebo that normally provided clear views of the park's surroundings. Today both river and the gazebo were obscured by mist. The torn shreds of condensation flowed thickly through the landscape, limiting visibility to a few meters. It was not the sort of weather that invited the usual park goers but the two men that exited the carriage were not there to enjoy the views of the lake or to get some fresh air.

"Alastaire said it was down near the lake, off the main track." Doumeki studied his companion's face as he spoke.

Kimihiro was wrapped in his black heavy coat, the matching black scarf wrapped around his neck. The pale dawn light made him look paler than usual and emphasized the shadows under his eyes. Shadows which had grown deeper over the last few weeks.

While Doumeki had ensured that Kimihiro would not leave the protection of his estate without him, the prince still knew that the lord continued to receive visitors. Or rather clients. None of the nobles who came to see Kimihiro were there for social reasons. It didn't please him but Doumeki knew that Kimihiro would never agree to shun what he saw as his duty even if it was a royal order.

Now against the backdrop of shifting mists Kimihiro looked more worn and insubstantial than he had in the bleak surroundings of his mansion. Add to that, his new habit of nervously scanning his surroundings, the lord did not look well.

Kimihiro frowned at the information, ignoring Doumeki's scrutiny. "It makes sense that it would be away from the trail but by the lake..." His lips pursed and he stared through the mist to where the flow of water lay.

Doumeki followed his gaze, Lord Grantham's tainted pond foremost in his mind. But a glance back at Kimihiro revealed it to be a contemplative stare rather than one of his seeing gazes. His face hadn't taken on that half-frozen look when he spotted something dangerous.

The stare lasted long enough that Doumeki decided to take action. He studied Kimihiro for a moment then reached out and pulled Kimihiro's scarf up more firmly round his throat, managing to brush a pale cheek with one gloved finger in the process.

Kimihiro jumped at the touch and span around. Dark blue eyes snapped towards Doumeki, flaring with irritation.

Doumeki simply turned and started walking. The hiss of irritation behind him indicated that the lord was not impressed by his manner. Doumeki allowed a slight smile cross his lips. If Kimihiro had enough energy to be irritated, then he wasn't in too bad a state.

It took only a few moments for the lord to catch up. His anger lent him energy and Doumeki was amused to see him stride forcefully across the frosted grass beside him. In motion and touched with anger Kimihiro looked more like himself. It was reassuring. And it added some colour to his otherwise sickly pallor.

They moved further into the mist, Kimihiro a cranky presence at Doumeki's side, the carriage a dark shadow that soon disappeared from sight. In moments their world was narrowed down to a radius of five meters; sloping ground covered with frost-stiffened grass and shadows through a thick wall of fog.

Passing through the fog was a curious sensation. It was a brief wet coolness upon the skin that soon dispersed. Objects would become clear as they drew closer and then fade once more back into the fog as they passed. It was a strange unearthly feeling. And with the sounds except for those in the immediate area deadened, it was eerily quiet.

Doumeki had an idea of where they were heading - he had been to Highbridge numerous times in the past and was quite familiar with it. Despite in the thickening mist, he was certain of where they were. But even Kimihiro, who had probably never set foot inside the grounds before, walked confidently. Either he was confident in Doumeki's sense of direction or he had his own ways to navigate the hidden landscape.

It was a curious thought and Doumeki entertained various theories as they walked further down the slope. He wasn't entirely sure what Kimihiro could see. The lord had been remarkably tight-lipped on the subject except for that brief lapse out to the village near Daiworth.

Everything. Kimihiro had said that he could see everything. From what Doumeki knew of the second world, it suggested that he would not only see spirits of the dead but the natural spirits that dwelt in everything, from rocks to animals. Doumeki glanced out at the mist, wondering what it would look like to one with sight open to the entire second world.

A sharp breath at his side drew Doumeki's attention from his thoughts. The land had flattened and they were now on the shore of the lake fed by the canal running though the park. The fog lay thicker here at the water's edge but it was still possible to make out forms in the shifting mist. In the distance shadowy figures moved across the grass. Even as they approached, one turned and faced towards them. "Your Highness?"

Kimihiro glanced at Doumeki. The prince could see the slight hesitation in the look. Though he hadn't voiced the thought in words, it was clear that Kimihiro was questioning his wisdom in being seen with him in public. He was not the most politically correct companion to have.

Doumeki ignored the silent question and strode forward. After a brief hesitation and a near-inaudible sigh, the lord followed.

As they drew closer, the fog peeled back. A number of people stood together conversing near the shore while several others searched on the edge of their vision, poking through the reeds at the edge of the lake with long poles. The man who had addressed the prince stepped forward and bowed.

"Your Highness." He was a young man, the black knee-length cloak with the silver embroidery he wore revealing that he was a warden of the Southern Quarter. "Lord Woodrow is expecting you." His eyes darted curiously at Kimihiro who was surveying the proceedings along the lake with a look of foreboding.

Doumeki ignored the look and nodded. After another glance at the lord, the young warden turned to lead the way. Doumeki fell into step next to him and Kimihiro followed slightly behind, still casting looks at the lake.

The warden led them across the flat ground by the lake's shore and past the cluster of people standing there. They wore the same coats as their guide, indicating that they too were wardens. One of the men glanced up as they passed, dark eyes narrowing briefly before returning to his conversation. Doumeki glanced back at Kimihiro and noted the slight hesitation of his movements. He made a mental note to enquire about the warden.

But first there was the matter at hand to deal with.

The man they were there to meet stood on a slight rise further back from the water where he could supervise all the activity carried out along the lakeshore. Unlike the other men, who all wore the cloaks of wardens, the lord was wearing clothes befitting his station. He wore much the same as the prince did - a dark suit covered by a heavy winter coat. The only difference was that where Doumeki's clothes were plain, the chief warden's were covered in a tasteful layer of embroidery prominently featuring falling leaves and small gold frogs. It made him look as if he was out for a morning stroll rather than the serious business that had drawn the lean lord out of bed so early.

The chief warden stood conversing with another man, eyes intent on him as he spoke. He noticed their approach immediately, though, and ended the conversation, dismissing his companion. The man, a middle-aged warden looking unhealthily gaunt, bowed his head and strode quickly down towards the cluster of wardens standing along the shore. He only paused long enough to bow to the prince as he passed.

Lord Woodrow ignored the departure of the older man, however. His gaze passed over the prince, lingering on his companion and then turned to the young warden who escorted them. "Minoru." It was a dismissal.

The young man bowed and headed back down the slope, following the older warden who was nearly at the lakeshore.

Alastaire turned to Doumeki once he was out of earshot. "Are you bored or something?" A pale brow rose over even paler eyes.

Doumeki could tell that Kimihiro was appalled by the lack of manners even though his face was coolly impassive. The twitching of his gloved hands gave him away.

The prince ignored the rude enquiry. He was well-used to the chief warden's manner. "You said there was a missing servant girl."

The eyebrow rose higher. "Really cousin, aren't you going to introduce me to your companion first?" The appearance of gentility was ruined by his next words. "I can't talk warden business in front of just anybody." Alastaire smiled as he said it but he regarded the pale lord with equally pale cool eyes.

Doumeki could practically feel Kimihiro twitch at his side. A sideways glance, however, revealed him to be as impassive as ever. But even as he watched, the dark blue eyes moved to meet his own and something flashed through them, too quickly for him to decipher the thoughts behind them.

"Lord Kimihiro Watanuki." Kimihiro suddenly drew off a glove and held out a pale bare hand.

The chief warden seemed amused. "Lord Alastaire Woodrow, Chief Warden of the Southern Quarter." He took off his own glove and took the offered hand in his own.

Kimihiro didn't shake it. He simply held it in his own and stared into Alastaire's eyes. The hold lasted for a few moments and then Kimihiro abruptly let go of the chief warden's hand.

Alastaire took his hand back with a slightly puzzled smile. His eyes flicked to the prince in question but Doumeki simply shook his head.

He watched as Kimihiro replaced his glove, looking slightly paler than usual. Doumeki suddenly remembered the abrupt handshake with the head priest at the village outside Daiworth. Kimihiro had done something.

He laid a hand on Kimihiro's shoulder, a silent query if he was alright.

Kimihiro looked at him, a small shift of eye and nodded a slight affirmative.

Doumeki lifted his hand and turned back to Alastaire.

The chief warden had been watching it all and suddenly grinned as he caught Doumeki's eyes. "For some reason, I am suddenly reminded of a certain poem-"

"The servant girl?" Doumeki decided it was time to get down to business. He had the feeling that if he let Alastaire push it too much, Kimihiro's temper would get the better of him. While Doumeki found himself looking forward to the prospect, now wasn't the time.

Alastaire's gaze darted between him both, allowing himself one more grin before finally resuming a more neutral expression. His hand withdrew into a coat pocket and he began to idly turn his coin between gloved fingers. "Lady Leighton was here with her entourage yesterday. It was one of those events where everyone in society is invited."

Doumeki had been too. But he had turned down the invitation in favour of visiting the Watanuki estate.

Alastaire knew that his cousin had been absent and his pale gaze moved questioningly to Kimihiro only to find blank blue eyes. After a moment he looked away again. "It wasn't until after the guests dispersed and the lady had returned to her estates that she realized her maid was missing." A wry grimace. "It turned out that the last time anyone had seen her, she was walking along the shore of the lake." He glanced out at the mist-enshrouded water. "There's no sign she left the park and none of the searches through the park have located her. We're exploring the possibility that she might have drowned." A dark smile crossed his lips. "It wouldn't be the first time something like this has happened."

Doumeki cast Alastaire a sharp look before following his gaze. The cluster of wardens had dispersed and a number of them were now walking along the shore, carrying the long hooked poles that were used to pull corpses from the water. Alastaire must have sent them to check the outlet that drained the lake waters to join the canal linked to the river. It was possible after a day, but unlikely. The search didn't seem to be going anywhere.

He glanced over at Kimihiro.

The lord was looking at the lake again. He turned as he felt the prince's eyes on him. "Perhaps we could go down and have a look." The tone was idle but the look in Kimihiro's eyes suggested that it was anything but a random request.

Doumeki couldn't find anything to gainsay it and shot a look to his cousin. Alastaire's mouth quirked, the man no doubt finding something amusing about the situation, but he nodded.

xXx

Kimihiro could feel stares on him as he walked along the lakeshore beside Doumeki and Lord Woodrow. He was used to stares, from humans and spirits alike, and he did his best to ignore them now.

Instead he focused on the strange feeling that he had been picking up ever since they had drawn closer to the lake. Now that he was walking alongside its edge Kimihiro could sense the feeling more clearly and he concentrated on separating it out from the conflicting sensations that ranged through the gardens. It took him a while - he wasn't used to being in such surroundings - but he finally identified the origin. It was the lake. But it wasn't anything in it. Or rather it was the sense of emptiness that the lake shouldn't possess.

The second world was an unseen layer of existences that overlapped the material world. Everything, be it a stone, a plant, or an animal, had its own spirit. While Kimihiro could see all of these it was only when a spirit moved, or departed from its body that it clearly came to his attention. When non-malevolent forces were involved, most of the time it was merely a tug on his awareness that he could fade out of his consciousness if he chose. Only if he purposefully opened his sight, as he had to look into Lord Grantham's pond, did he clearly see everything around him. It wasn't always so but he had learnt control the hard way.

But Kimihiro wasn't only limited to using his sight. If he concentrated, Kimihiro could often sense the spirit that lay within things. It wasn't something he often did - it was often as dangerous as dealing with spirits and curses - but it was a skill that he sometimes resorted to when the need arose.

Like now.

Kimihiro directed his attention to the lake, ignoring the slight headache that was starting up. And after a while he began to realize why the lake felt so empty. The spirit that should have inhabited such a large body of water was silent. Even when he strained, he couldn't sense even a whisper of its presence. It was as if it had ended.

It was not a pleasant thought. Only a few creatures could do such a thing and none of them were pleasant. And if it was what he thought it might be, then dealing with it would not be a simple matter.

"We've searched the shore. Once the fog clears up the boats will be sent out to see if we can find a body." The chief warden was filling in the prince on the wardens' plan of action. He seemed have forgotten the presence of the normally reclusive lord that trailed behind them.

Seemed. Kimihiro had caught his curious pale gaze several times. It was somewhat unsettling after having purposefully searched the man's soul for any sign of taint.

"There's no chance of her being somewhere else in the grounds?" Doumeki had been casting his own looks back at his abnormally quiet companion. And while he addressed the question to the chief warden, his eyes asked the same of the other man.

Kimihiro shook his head slightly. If the maid was alive then someone would have found her by now. And if she had died anywhere else, he suspected the lake would not be so quiet.

Alastaire hadn't missed the exchange. He was staring outright now, coin turning between his fingers. "We've already carried out a full search of the grounds. We didn't find any sign of her."

A slight breeze crept over the ground, moving the mist in slow swirling trails. Kimihiro pulled his coat around him tighter. He wasn't used to such cold. He didn't think he could remember ever being outside on a day like this before.

A twinge shot through his right eye and he winced.

Doumeki noticed. A frowned creased the prince's brow as he slowed his pace.

Kimihiro glared at him. He was fine. The last thing he needed was for Doumeki to give a public show of concern. It was bad enough that their names would probably be linked together after this day.

Doumeki seemed to get the message. He turned his attention back to the conversation he held with Lord Woodrow. "Who have you called in?"

Kimihiro let the conversation run on without him. He was still somewhat unnerved by what he had felt within the lake. And there was something else. Something that wasn't connected to the lake at all...

Kimihiro felt a chill run through him which had nothing to do with the cold, early morning air or the mist that flowed around them. He eyed the surrounding mist uneasily. There was something there.

Kimihiro's gaze slid across the lakeshore. The wardens were still carrying out their search among the reeds and in the shallow water at the edge of the lake. While he still got one or two surreptitious glances, they were not the source of what he was feeling now.

His gaze moved to the slow moving mist as it swirled over the slope of frosted grass leading down to the lake. It took him a moment to see it but when he did there was no mistaking it. There was something moving through the shifting white curtain.

Kimihiro's hand reached for his pocket and the silver watch he always carried. He didn't feel the coiling sickness that accompanied the arrival of a malevolent spirit. But it wasn't only the spirits of the dead that were dangerous.

The mist swirled. A thicker section grew in the white currents, gradually taking form. Finally a short figure became clear. A solid form on a shredded background.

It was a little girl. She couldn't be more than six or seven. A white sundress fluttered around her thin legs and a pale wide brimmed hat with a pale blue ribbon fluttering from its brim sat atop her long dark hair. Dark eyes, darker than the hair that fluttered around her shoulders, stared down the slope at him.

The stare lasted for a long moment. But finally the girl raised a hand in a slow beckoning gesture and turned back into the mists.

It wasn't the maid that they were searching for but Kimihiro got the feeling that this was more important.

Kimihiro pulled his coat tighter around him and started quickly up the slope. Chasing the fading form of the girl that was disappearing into the mists.

There was more at stake here than finding the corpse of a missing woman.

xXx

1) More European influences rather than oriental. The empire is a mixture of both but European traditions are stronger in its Eastern reaches. Incidentally, the continent is in the southern hemisphere. It's not important right now but it's something to keep in mind.

xXx


	46. Concealing Mists III

ENTWINING FATES:

CONCEALING MISTS

III

"I think Lord Watanuki might be on the verge of another one of his fits."

It took Doumeki a moment to figure out what Alastaire was talking about. He turned to find Kimihiro was staring out into the surrounding mists, a strange expression on his face. It was something of a cross between deep concentration and reluctant dread. His eyes had darkened, pupils widening. It was obvious that he was looking at something from the second world again.

For someone who hadn't seen it before, though, it might have appeared as a fit. Doumeki wondered if something like this had occurred at the ball which marked the end of Kimihiro's social acceptance. He doubted it. It was strange enough but there had to be more to it.

Kimihiro abruptly started walking. Away from the lake.

Doumeki started after him.

"Does this happen often?" Alastaire was walking beside him, staring curiously at the hastening strides of the lord in front of them.

Doumeki ignored the question and quickened his pace. Kimihiro was moving rather quickly, with no apparent regard for the landscape he traversed. And as fast as he was going, the Keeper was at risk of loosing him in the thick fog.

With already one disappearance, Doumeki wasn't willing to risk it.

Within a short time they were cut off from the lake by a thick wall of mist. The two men hurried after the lord who had a tendency to fade into the mist in front of them, a dark shadow in a wall of white. At one point they almost lost him and burst into a run to catch up, the trail through the frosted grass their only clue to the direction their quarry had taken.

It was a good twenty minutes or so until Kimihiro finally stopped. By this point, Doumeki was getting worried. He'd never seen Kimihiro act in this way before and he was beginning to think that the lord might have been entranced by something. When the flitting shadow in front of them finally stopped moving, Doumeki darted forward.

"Oi." He took a firm grip on Kimihiro's arm and stood in front of him, trying to get his attention.

Darkened blue eyes flickered to his face briefly and flittered away. "She's here."

"Here?" Alastaire surveyed their surroundings with a wary eye. Most of his amusement seemed to have been sapped by the eerie chase they had been given.

Doumeki's grip tightened. They were on a rise overlooking what would be the lake on a clear day. But now it was just a thick soup of mist. Despite the view it would afford in better weather, it seemed unlikely that the maid would have wandered so far.

If she was in her right mind.

Kimihiro suddenly twisted his arm, pulling free from the prince's grasp. Doumeki and Alastaire watched warily as he suddenly stripped off his gloves and thrust them into his coat pockets. Before either of them could stop him, Kimihiro sank to his knees and began tearing at the turf with the sliver snail picks that had slipped into his hand.

The chief warden started forward only to be pulled up short by Doumeki's tight grip on his arm. The warden shot him an exasperated glance. "I don't know what he's up to" Alastaire glanced at the digging lord who seemed oblivious to the byplay behind him, "but I doubt he does either." He made to move forward again. The grip on his arm tightened and Alastaire winced.

But he didn't stop talking.

"Doumeki, he hasn't got the best reputation for mental stability. And look," the chief warden gestured at the turf the lord was pulling up. "The ground hasn't been disturbed recently. There's no way she's been buried here." Alastaire shot a slightly disturbed look at the lord. "And there's no sign of foul play in the first place."

Doumeki looked over as well. A fair amount of frosted grass had been removed and thrown to the side. Kimihiro now worked on the cold, hard soil that had been concealed beneath it, silver picks digging into the dark compact soil to pry up great chunks that were picked up and thrown to the side with his other hand.

It did, for all purposes, look like the lord had lost his mind. But Doumeki remembered the look he had received before. Kimihiro had been seeing something that they could not. It was likely that his actions now were a result of that.

Besides, if he ever went mad, Doumeki expected it would be a rather loud and entertaining occasion. Not this show of silent distracted concentration.

He released his grip on his cousin's arm. "Leave him alone."

Alastaire massaged his arm and stared at the prince with a wry expression. "I wasn't going to do anything." He glanced at the kneeling lord still prying up frozen dirt. "Just make certain that he was in his right mind, that's all."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed. He had seen the methods the wardens used on drunks and was not about to let Alastaire try it out on Kimihiro.

Alastaire saw the look and threw up his hands, taking a step back. "If you want to let him dig up dirt, then that's fine." He glanced around the frosted grass that was all that could be seen of their mist-shrouded surroundings. "But it's a good thing that no one can see this except us. The rumours about the instability of the Watanuki line would increase tenfold if they did."

There was a sudden cracking sound. "My parents were never regarded as being impaired in mind or body."

Both men turned to see Kimihiro slowly rising to his feet. His voice was even but Doumeki could tell from the way he hid his eyes that he was furious.

Alastaire didn't seem phased at all by being suddenly addressed by the lord. Or the sight of the silver snail picks that were still held tightly in one hand. "Had enough digging around?"

There was a glint of metal as Kimihiro returned the picks to his sleeve. They were already free of the dirt - he must have wiped them clean on the grass before standing. He gave the chief warden a measuring glance before gesturing silently to the hole he had created.

Alastaire's raised eyebrow was quickly joined by the other as his expression of mocking enquiry turned into surprise. He quickly moved forward a few paces to get a better look.

Closer, Doumeki only turned to stare down at what was revealed in the shallow hole. He was only mildly surprised at what he saw - strange things appearing in the vicinity were common fare when he accompanied Kimihiro.

In this case the long pale object was familiar. It was a bone.

xXx

Kimihiro rubbed his hands together in a futile effort to remove the last traces of dirt. Even after running them through the frosted grass, they were still stained a faint brown that prevented him from replacing his gloves.

Lord Woodrow had sunk to one knee beside the freshly-dug hole and was brushing aside the concealing dirt with his gloved hands to reveal the bone further. A frown creased his mouth as it became clear what he was staring at.

"This is a human bone." He stared up at the lord with a look that was quickly turning suspicious.

"A humerus." Kimihiro acknowledged. The growing suspicion on the other man's face was expected after that statement he supposed, but Kimihiro couldn't help but feel the spike of dislike that shot through him.

Kimihiro had only been vaguely aware of their conversation while he followed the ghost's directions. All that came through was that the chief warden had wanted to stop him carrying on and Doumeki had stopped him. Something Kimihiro was appreciative off - Doumeki could be helpful if he put his mind to it. However, after he had finally reached the bone, Kimihiro had become aware of the conversation that was flowing on without him. The chief warden's words about his lineage had caused a burn of rage to rush through him.

It was true that he had a reputation of being mentally unbalanced. After the events seven years ago at Lady Kashi's banquet it was a natural enough conclusion to draw. He had gotten used the rumours and the outright stares - he hadn't needed to worry much about them, though, as he had withdrawn into the Watanuki mansion shortly afterwards. But he was still aware of how he was regarded by society. The less tactful of his clients made sure of that.

For the most part Kimihiro didn't care for what was said about him - he knew the truth of the matter and since he was not about to reveal it, the rumours provided a convenient cover for the truth. But it enraged him to think that people's perception of him had in turn tainted the memory of his parents. They did not deserve to be slandered in such a way. Especially after what they had done to preserve the lives of the very people who spoke idly about them when they were dead and could not defend themselves.

Lord Woodrow's comment had not endeared him to Kimihiro. Especially after what the lord had seen when he had looked in the chief warden's soul.

What he had done was a dangerous thing. In truth he had only dared it because Doumeki had been close by - if the warden had been possessed then the Keeper's presence should have been enough to blunt its effects when it attempted to attack him. As it was the chief warden's soul had been untainted. But the nature of his soul had been a cause for worry in itself.

The man was what was commonly referred to as a pivot. Through some quirk of inheritance and lineage he was open to a variety of supernatural forces. Where most people could only be possessed by a spirit of the same lineage or inclinations, the nature of the chief warden's soul meant that he was in a fluctuation of guarded rejection and open invitation. He was like his coin, spinning from guarded to open. An ambivalent state that made him dangerously open to spiritual influences.

It was not a safe thing. And it made Kimihiro uneasy that the prince was often in his company - it was a danger to Doumeki as well.

All of this made him reply to the next question rather baldly when otherwise he would have side-stepped the issue. His dislike and wariness of the chief warden made him more careless.

"And how did you manage to find the exact place where it was buried?" The chief warden's eyes were cold as he looked at the lord.

"Exactly how I know more of her bones are scattered over the hillside we now stand on." He met the pale eyes squarely - it wasn't much of a challenge after facing Doumeki down across the breakfast table. "The girl they belong to showed me."

"She showed you?" Doumeki was looking around the fog that surrounded them. His eyes passed right over the faded form of the girl without seeing the ghostly image.

Kimihiro met her dark gaze. She lifted a pale hand and pointed further down the slope. He nodded both to the direction and the prince's question. "Yes."

Doumeki didn't miss the movement. He followed Kimihiro's gaze to the girl, frowning at what to him seemed only a shifting mass of mist.

Alastaire looked too but frowned as his eyes found nothing out of the ordinary.

The girl seemed to take the attention as a cue. She drifted over closer, her sundress fluttering on an invisible wind. She stopped after a few steps and pointed down at the ground.

Kimihiro walked over, the other two men following behind and came to stand opposite her. He met her eyes for a moment then bent down and removed a chunk of turf with the aid of his silver picks. He threw the clump to the side, leaving a patch of exposed dirt and stood again.

The chief warden seemed to realize what he was doing. He looked down at the patch of exposed soil and then back up to the lord. "What is it this time?" The question was serious, even though his expression showed that he was uneasy and still slightly disbelieving about the whole matter.

"A femur."

Doumeki glanced to the ground and back again. "Did she tell you?"

Kimihiro looked at the girl again. The slightly clearer section of her image over the place where her left thigh would be under the dress. "In a way."

"How many bones are there?" The chief warden seemed willing to suspend his disbelief for the moment.

Kimihiro looked at the girl again. Her gaze had turned out towards the lake. He looked at her form, noting how it was intact, not fraying around the edges or patched in any area. "All of her."

Alastaire looked like he'd just bitten into a rotten apple. "So she's just strewn all over the place?" He seemed to have accepted the fact that the lord was seeing something he couldn't and that the identity of the bones was correct.

Kimihiro remained silent for a moment. He followed the girl's gaze out to the lake. Now that he was not focused on finding her remains he could sense the feeling of wrongness that permeated the area. It was a like a flow of sewerage - a whiff every so often caught on the shifting of the wind. The sensation was so elusive that it took him a moment to link the taint with the scatter of bones that the girl was outlining.

It was a flow from the bones to the water further down the slope. Corruption was leaking through the ground and into the lake. An insidious, deadly flow that had been steadily poisoning the water spirit inhabiting the lake.

"Only down to the lake." Kimihiro stared out with the spirit of the girl towards the fog-enshrouded lake. Tracing the faint trail that disappeared once it hit the water. Diluting into a barely perceptible poison that he wouldn't have sensed if he had been shown where to look.

It had been a deliberate act. The girl had been slain and her defiled bones spread through the land so that the taint would slowly flow through the earth to leech into the lake. A slow poison that had seeped through soil, running through earth to reach the waters of the lake, a constant, unrelenting attack upon the water spirit that guarded the park. An attack that ironically worsened every time it rained, the water that would have otherwise rejuvenated the water spirit slowly killing it. Something had been trying to break the focal point of the park and thus render it usefulness moot as a point in a major ward.

It was just like what had happened at Lord Grantham's pond, except this time it was a girl not a fox. And it was inside the boundary of the city. Yuuko was right. Something was within the wards of the city.

And from the way the girl's body had been ripped apart – the inherent violence of the action in conjunction with the deliberate layout of the remains through the hill - Kimihiro had an idea of what it was.

It looked like his worst fears were true.

xXx

All in all, they located more than twenty separate areas where the girl's bones had been buried. Doumeki had finally called a halt to the search when it was clear that a mundane search of the area would unearth most of them.

Kimihiro had been looking grim since the second discovery and had become increasingly pale and withdrawn. No doubt Alastaire attributed it to the cold but Doumeki knew better. There was something more than bones in this hillside.

Doumeki had been paying closer attention to his instincts since the affair with Lord Halstead's painting. It had become more common for him to realize that certain things didn't feel quite right. It was nothing like Kimihiro's fearful attunement to the second world and it didn't happen every time but Doumeki was beginning to sense when there was something seriously wrong with an object or place. And right now he was getting the same feeling.

Kimihiro wasn't saying everything.

"I'll have the hill dug up." Alastaire was grim as he surveyed the patches of exposed soil that dotted the slope. He glanced over at Kimihiro. "Do you have any idea of what happened to the maid?"

The lord looked up from his frowning contemplation of the lake below and slowly shook his head.

Alastaire sighed. "I suppose not." He ignored Doumeki's hard stare. "We'd better continue the search then or His Highness will be facing complaints from Lady Leighton." A wry smile crossed his face. "Apparently the girl was very dear to her. Too bad that she didn't feel that way earlier and check on her presence before they left the park. We might not have been searching for her body otherwise."

Doumeki expected Kimihiro to react to that but when he glanced over it became clear that the lord was too wrapped up in his own thoughts to take much notice of what rudeness the chief warden was spouting.

Doumeki nodded. "Report to me this afternoon."

Alastaire raised an eyebrow and glanced over at the lord questioningly. Doumeki said nothing and the warden's mouth quirked slightly.

"I'll take my leave then." He nodded to the lord. "Lord Watanuki. I'm sure we'll meet again." He held out a gloved hand.

Kimihiro eyed the offered hand for a moment before taking it in one of his own. "We will." He met the other man's eyes with a solemn stare. "But until then you should keep that coin close."

Alastaire froze in the act of withdrawing his hand. He eyed the lord sharply, an uneasy expression on his face.

Kimihiro simply stared back at him.

Alastaire finally nodded slowly. "I shall." He nodded once more to his cousin and turned away, striding down the slope and disappearing into the mist.

Doumeki stared at the lord until he started shifting uneasily. "What was that about?" He asked finally, when it was clear that the other man wasn't about to speak.

Kimihiro glared at him and suddenly started walking back towards the trail where the carriage waited. "It was a caution, nothing more. Lord Woodrow needs to be more careful."

Doumeki followed him, his long strides keeping up with the other man's quick steps effortlessly. "Of what?"

Mist in front of them swirled in a sudden breeze and the lord pulled his jacket closer around his neck. Clearly the scarf did not suffice. "His tongue for one. I was beginning to think it was just you but apparently I was wrong."

Doumeki's mouth twitched but he wasn't distracted. "And?"

The lord stopped and turned around. "With the way things are going, the wardens are going to run into things that they don't know how to deal with. I suspect that Lord Woodrow will face some interesting situations in the future."

It was truth but not the whole truth. But it was as much as Kimihiro was going to give him for now. Doumeki had learned to recognize when the man was simply being stubborn and when he wasn't going to reveal anymore.

"And the girl?" It was obvious that there was more to the whole matter. Otherwise Kimihiro would never have volunteered to come with him in the first place. The lord hated being recognized in public and usually did his best to avoid the possibility when he ventured out. A tendency that led to a general avoidance of public places.

Kimihiro started walking again. "The entire city is protected by a vast network of wards."

It was nothing he hadn't heard before but Doumeki kept silent. When Kimihiro started out with familiar information it usually meant that he was about to reveal something that was vital and, the prince had found out, not available from other sources.

"The first protection is the four cardinal Wards. With the royal palace they create a ward of five points that is the ultimate protection of the city. Each of the Wards in turn is supported by the lesser wards of each quarter. The shrines. This forms the secondary protection. If they are maintained then the four Wards are strengthened beyond the means of their own wards."

Kimihiro suddenly looked tired. "The third protection is the parks."

Doumeki's head turned sharply from their surroundings. "Such as Highbridge?"

Kimihiro gave him a faint smile that didn't reveal anything of joy. "The parks, like the Wards, have existed since the foundation of the capital. Most contain trees that have stood for centuries. Over all that time they have been replanted in the same manner - a repetition of warding that has continued throughout the history of the city."

Doumeki frowned as the implications of that became clear. The reason why the parks had been placed under the authority of the Keepers.

Dark blue eyes traversed the mist. "It was originally a pact between the elemental spirits and the founders of the city. Areas that were left preserved in exchange for the use of the rest of the land used to support the city." Kimihiro sighed and rubbed his right temple. "Most are gone now, and the balance has been left to the structure of the parks themselves to maintain their warding function."

Kimihiro slowed and Doumeki shortened his steps. They were nearing the trail and it was obvious that the lord wanted to finish talking before they reached the carriage. Doumeki had noticed the habit before and thought nothing of it but now it struck him as strange.

"Where the shrines of the city are usually maintained by the families of the priests that serve them, with the gardens, it's usually the gardeners." His eyes met the prince's gaze. "The family that tended this park left several years ago after the disappearance of their youngest daughter."

Doumeki stopped walking.

The lord nodded, stopping himself. "The girl on the hill." He sounded tired. "I was unable to attend to the matter at the time." His eyes darkened slightly as he stared out into the mist back the way they'd come. "And that mistake seems to be coming back to me now."

He ignored Doumeki's sharp glance. "Whatever killed the girl did so in such a manner that her bones have been leaking a taint into the earth. Over time it has drained into the lake."

"The lake?" First a pond and now a lake.

The lord pulled his coat closer around him, obviously cold in the chill air. "It's the focus of the park. As such it should house a resident water spirit." His lips thinned. "But I couldn't sense anything. Either it has gone dormant, in which case the ward is weakened, or it has ended and the ward is broken."

Kimihiro caught the prince's frown. "To judge how the Southern Ward has held up, however, it must be the former. In which case the spirit should recover once the taint is removed." He began walking again. "You'll have to ensure that after the bones are collected they are purified and the rites carried out in full at the Southern Ward."

Doumeki lengthened his strides to catch up. "And the water spirit?"

There was a slight hesitation on the next step. "It should recover on its own. If it doesn't, then I'll have to come back and deal with it later."

"Not now?"

A dark blue stare. "I don't have the capabilities right now."

So he'd have to go see Yuuko and make some sort of bargain. The idea didn't sit well with Doumeki. He'd seen what state Kimihiro was left in after such deals had been made.

They kept walking in silence for a few moments. Gradually the shadowy forms in the fog ahead of them began to take on more familiar lines. The gazebo. The carriage left to wait for them on the gravel road.

Kimihiro adjusted his scarf, pace quickening slightly as he caught sight of the carriage.

"Do you want my coat?" Doumeki didn't feel particularly cold but then he didn't have such a slender build.

Blue eyes widened slightly in surprise. Kimihiro frowned soon after, though. "Keep it." It wasn't the angry retort it could have been. Either the lord was too distracted or he was getting more accepting of Doumeki's offers of aid. It was hard to tell which.

Doumeki had to hide his smile as they approached the carriage.

As they drew closer, the footman jumped down from his perch and opened the cabin door. Kimihiro's steps lengthened slightly at the prospect of relief from the cold air.

Something black flashed through the mist near the gazebo and the lord flinched. Doumeki turned to see a crow perched on the wooden rail of the structure. It tilted its head, staring at them from one dark eye and let out a throaty caw.

Kimihiro's shoulders hunched and he quickly stepped up into the carriage. After one last glance, Doumeki followed and climbed up inside behind him. He sat beside Kimihiro and the door shut, cutting off the mist and the crow with a firm thud.

Doumeki shot the lord a questioning glance.

Kimihiro shook his head. "Not here."

xXx


	47. Concealing Mists IV

ENTWINING FATES:

CONCEALING MISTS

IV

Hikideshi opened the door to let them in, revealing no trace of surprise as his gaze fell on Doumeki. He simply nodded in greeting and closed the door behind them before taking their coats. "Istuki and Kichirou have returned the carriage, my lord." His voice was calm and businesslike. "I told them you wouldn't be going out again today." There was a quick glance at Doumeki, a measuring look as if Doumeki would provide a clue to Kimihiro's actions.

Kimihiro didn't seem put out that the butler had made arrangements without him. "Was there anything else?"

Hikideshi's gaze returned to Kimihiro. "Several messages came, none of them urgent." He pulled a card from one pocket of his jacket and handed it over. "Lady Yuhara visited. She left her card."

Kimihiro looked at the card for a moment before slipping it in his jacket pocket. "Hikideshi." Kimihiro hadn't made a move towards the study as Doumeki had expected. "I'm showing His Highness the map room."

The butler paused in hanging up their coats in the entranceway. He cast a sharp glance at the lord before sliding his eyes towards Doumeki. The measuring gaze was back for a moment and then the butler bowed, "Of course, my lord." He hung the last coat and then crossed the foyer, heading up the staircase. Kimihiro followed, sending Doumeki a glance before setting his foot on the first step.

Doumeki followed him with a curious sense of anticipation. It was clear that more than maps was going to be revealed. Apparently now Kimihiro felt it safe enough to talk about what he had postponed at Highbridge. There was also the prospect of learning more about the mansion and its master. Doumeki was aware that with each new area of the mansion that was showed to him, Kimihiro was revealing more of himself. A definitive measure of the trust that he was slowly giving.

Doumeki followed Kimihiro up the stairs. As they ascended higher, he glanced down at the foyer below, the huge ward set into the floor, implacable black lines against a sea of formless white. From above the form of the ward was clearer, each point the end of an arm of a large star. From a higher vantage, the looping lines that linked the space between the arms were dizzying, giving the illusion that they were flexing, living protections that crawled across the floor. Doumeki took on last glance then continued up the stairs.

He had fallen slightly behind. Kimihiro was already waiting on the landing, an annoyed expression on his face. He didn't say anything, though, simply waited until Doumeki had reached his side.

Hikideshi had stopped at the door of a room set to one side of the staircase landing. The door was like all the others in the mansion, dark wood overlaid with scrolling silver leaf. The butler glanced at them both, and then pressed down on the handle, opening the door.

After a slight pause, Kimihiro walked inside. Doumeki shot an enquiring glance at Hikideshi but followed when he received nothing but an indication that he should enter.

The room was riddled with ward lines. There were no windows - only a large chandelier that could be lowered by a system of pulleys, lit the room. It revealed a bare space that was empty but for a series of bookshelves on one wall and a large table that took up the centre of the room, positioned directly under the chandelier. Kimihiro made a beeline for the table, eyes fixed on the large sheet of paper that was spread across its surface.

It was only when Doumeki came closer that he realized that it was a map. A huge map that took up the entire surface of the table. At first the series of ever-widening rings marked boldly over the paper were what caught his attention. But once his eyes started taking in the fainter layer of features underneath, Doumeki realized what he was staring at. A map of the capital.

It was lacking many of the features that were seen on more recent maps but it was still recognizable. At the centre sat a large star that marked the palace, nestling in the curve of the river that flowed through the city. Four more stars were set to the north, east, south and west, marking the cardinal Wards. A mon (1) was enclosed in each of the stars, displaying the crests of the lines which held each of the wards. The arms of the stars were filled with elemental designs: air to the north, earth to the east, water to the south and fire to the west (2). Only the star representing the palace was devoid of elemental ornamentation: aside from the cherry blossom crest of the royal line, the star was plain. All five stars were enclosed within the innermost ring, a circle that coincided with the original walls of the city.

Other features were also enclosed within the city boundary. Ten circles, two located near each of the five stars, stood out in bold black ink. They marked the gardens of the city - the eight open to the public and the two private ones attached to the palace. Smaller stars filled in the area inside the circle, and after a few moments of searching out landmarks, Doumeki realized that they were the locations of shrines, the smaller wards that spread through the city. He'd never seen them marked so clearly on a map before - modern maps usually left out such features - but he could now see the network they created as the supports for the cardinal Wards. A connection shown by a number of thin lines that linked them together.

Beyond the ring enclosing the city, the land was divided into the various properties, boundary lines that no longer existed for the most part. Four more large stars were marked, each to a cardinal direction, aligned with the four Wards within the city. Doumeki immediately recognized the southern star as the location of the Watanuki mansion and realized that they marked the strongholds of the lines that supported the Wards. Hundreds of tiny stars marked the spaces between, showing the location of shrines on every property, the dosojin set at every crossroads. Essentially every sacred site.

Kimihiro was staring at him, eyes dark. "It marks the protections of the city. All of those that were established during the planning of the capital." His eyes lowered to the city marked at the centre of the map. "The capital was created to be a living protection, designed by it's planner to be in essence a large ward."

"Clow Reed." Doumeki cast the name out like a pebble into a pond, watching closely for the reactions of the other two men in the room.

Kimihiro had frozen at the name and now his eyes rose in a sharp blue stare. He studied Doumeki's face closely for a minute and then his eyes narrowed and turned to Hikideshi. The butler met his lord's glare with perfect composure and finally Kimihiro's shoulders slumped. He nodded. "Clow Reed. Who later became Lord Watanuki, the founder of the Watanuki line."

Doumeki glanced over the butler. Hikideshi's dark eyes fixed on him a moment before the man gave him firm nod.

Kimihiro had caught the exchange. He sighed and a hand rose to massage his right temple. "But no doubt you already know about that." His voice was suddenly resigned. "The city is divided into the four quarters by the four roads that lead directly from the four gates of the city walls. But it's the ceremonial roads that lead from the palace to the cardinal wards which are important. They don't just mark the traditional path of the various festivals. The roads are also pathways to channel the spirits and elementals of the city."

Doumeki frowned. "I thought that most were banished or expelled." Kimihiro had told him as much himself. The elementals at least should have been limited to the parks and not have been moving freely through the city.

Kimihiro shook his head. "Only those that were deemed too dangerous to be left within the bounds of the city. A vacuum is almost as bad as an imbalance." He paused for a moment, obviously not pleased with his own words.

Doumeki suddenly wondered if they weren't faced with both at the moment. "Because something will move to fill it."

The expression on Kimihiro's face told him that the prospect wasn't a pleasant one. "Most elementals are guardians of a certain area. They keep other things away. Within the city, the void had been filled by the spirits of those who died in the city. They have less of a tie to the land and are usually moved by their own desires." His voice grew thoughtful, eyes taking on a distant cast. "Though there are exceptions."

Haruka. Doumeki suddenly knew it with certainly. His grandfather was still tied to garden in the Southern Ward for a reason.

"Shrines and dosojin maintain the balance of the land." Kimihiro was still talking. "Crops will not grow without the spirits of the fields of the fields or the benevolence of water spirits." His attention turned from the land outside the city back to the area within the walls. "The city is balanced in a different way. The more powerful elementals were given the parks in exchange for use of the land which the city now covers. Others were left to live in the spaces which they could. Every so often they will reside in a garden or a well, smaller elementals that have survived the changes."

"And those that were expelled?" He wanted to know about the threat that now sat outside the walls. What Kimihiro seemed to fear most.

"They were usually a mix of human spirits and elementals." Kimihiro frowned. "Not all human spirits are harmful and not even all of those are expelled. The roads and shrines channel them through the city, keeping them to certain paths. But when they break free or did harm, they were usually banished."

"For centuries, a delicate balance was maintained. Keepers, wardens, practitioners and the people themselves holding it steady through the old ways. The rituals and festivals that involved every person in the city." His eyes were dark. "There were threats at various times but ultimately they were turned back." Kimihiro grimaced. "Until recently."

He nodded to Hikideshi who slid out a drawer from under the table, retrieving a large roll of translucent paper. The butler spread it out across the map, superimposing a series of coloured crosses over and around various stars. "This details the recent outbreaks of the second world."

Doumeki's eyes fell on the map. Red crosses covered its surface, filing in the circle and crossing the land outside the walls. It was an outbreak with disturbances showing up everywhere. "For how long?"

Kimihiro was beside him, a warm presence at his side, looking over the map. "The last twenty years. Most of them are normal occurrences that can be explained by the absence of the wardens." Kimihiro's voice wasn't angry, simply factual. "Their traditional roles have abandoned for the most part and the priests of the shrines can only attend their own parishes. Without the coordinated efforts of the wardens, things have been slipping through the cracks."

Doumeki's eyes were on the larger red crosses that were scattered over the map. And the ominous black crosses that were marked to the south-west outside the city. One of which was perilously close to the Watanuki mansion. "And the occurrences that aren't normal?"

Kimihiro's gaze flicked up to his face then followed Doumeki's gaze to one of the black crosses. "There are some incidents that appear to be more than simple outbreaks." He picked up a wooden pointer propped up against the table and leaned forward to indicate one of the larger red crosses within the city limits. It was in the Southern Quarter, halfway between the Southern Ward and the palace. "It's certain that the brooch Lady Amita received was deliberately given to her." He indicated a cluster of larger crosses in the Eastern Quarter. "There have also been several incidents in the Eastern Quarter. An attack on a number of priests, several acts of vandalism. Fortunately, the east is still well-guarded."

Doumeki frowned. He hadn't heard of anything that could have been classified as major supernatural outbreaks in the Eastern Quarter. But he had only spoken to the Eastern Keeper rarely, when political gatherings gave him no choice. Lady Heath had always struck him as one of his mother's close allies. The only female Keeper, she had always given off a sharp assessing air like a concealed dagger. He had avoided her but now he thought back, Doumeki recalled that he had seen her talking several times with Haruka. His frown deepened. Perhaps his aversion had led him astray.

Kimihiro certainly seemed to have no qualms. He had hinted before that the Eastern Ward had been having problems but he hadn't shown any inclination to intervene. Had, in fact, indicated that while the second line that supported the Eastern Ward was busy, they had the situation well in hand. Doumeki wondered how closely the line was working with the Keeper. Whether it was as close as the friendship that struck up between Kimihiro and himself.

Whether the trust building up between himself and Kimihiro was merely the force of circumstances or something more.

Unaware of Doumeki's thoughts, Kimihiro turned to the black crosses that marred the map. "And then there are Their attacks." The last word was said with leaden finality.

Doumeki looked over to see that Kimihiro was staring down at the map with a curiously closed expression. A glance at Hikideshi showed the butler had taken on a more alert posture, eyes fixed on his master. The tension in small room was suddenly high.

Doumeki looked at the map once more, tracing the spread of the black crosses across the south-eastern corner of the map. He recognized Lord Grantham's estate and he suddenly realized that a black cross marked next to a small star coincided with the crossroads they had stopped at less than a week ago. The place where Kimihiro's parents died.

Kimihiro had noticed his gaze. Not quite looking at Doumeki, he lowered the pointer to the table, carefully resting his hands over the thin length, finger tips resting on the table. "My parents' death was not an accident." His right eye twitched, an involuntary flutter.

There was a slight movement from Hikideshi. The butler still had his eyes fixed on his lord. "They have always feared those with more power than their own."

Kimihiro's mouth twitched into a small smile that made him look even more forlorn.

Doumeki set a hand lightly on Kimihiro's shoulder. He didn't need to hear any more. He could put together what had happened. An attack by one of the creatures that even now was creeping closer to the city. And if it was something like the thing that had ripped the crows apart – he had no wish to remind Kimihiro of his parents' death.

He looked at the map, the spread of disaster meticulously inked in over years and years. "Did you show this to Haruka?" It was out of his mouth almost before he realized it. But Doumeki didn't regret it. He wanted to know.

Kimihiro blinked, clearly not having expected the question. His brow wrinkled in puzzlement. "No. His Grace never came here." Kimihiro's voice was wary but there was no evasion. He was telling the truth.

So he had been the first to be invited this far into the mansion. And the first to whom Kimihiro had explained the situation so fully. Doumeki felt some of the tension that had been building up in him disperse.

He turned his attention back to the map, letting his hand lift from Kimihiro's shoulder with a slight application of pressure. Doumeki eyed the signs of the weakening protections of the city. The darting, testing of protections by the banished elementals and spirits in incursions that rose from the south east. Laid out as it was, Doumeki could feel the sense of urgency that Kimihiro must have been struggling with alone for years.

"And there's nothing that could be done to bolster the wards?" Doumeki was frustrated to have gotten the information that he had been waiting for only to find it revealed a situation that he could only influence slightly.

Kimihiro hesitated. And then he addressed Hikideshi. "Could we manage a winter festival?"

Doumeki shot him a sharp glance. Kimihiro hadn't shown much hope of that situation earlier that morning. But despite his own apparent reservations, Kimihiro was still advancing the idea. The thought warmed Doumeki somewhat, that Kimihiro would suggest a solution even when he thought it wouldn't work. Kimihiro had obviously been listening and willing to forgo his own pride to ensure that there really wasn't a possibility that it would help. From Kimihiro that was a lot.

And it was telling that he was asking Hikideshi, the man who had been at the first Lord Watanuki's side when the man had been planning the city. Hikideshi, who was turning out to be more knowledgeable than Kimihiro about obscure supernatural matters.

The butler's black eyes narrowed as he considered Kimihiro's question. "With the state of the city, you would need a fully-fledged exorcist to lead the procession." His eyes met Doumeki's, a black gaze that was suddenly a professional assessment. "His Highness is not yet ready."

Doumeki's heart skipped a beat. An exorcist. Hikideshi had to be mistaken. Doumeki had never shown any sign of being able to see spirits, let along dispel them by will alone.

He glanced at Kimihiro to find the lord was glaring at Hikideshi who was unmoved by the fierce regard.

So it was true. Kimihiro had known and he hadn't said anything. _Haruka_ hadn't said anything.

He shoved aside his rising anger and turned to Hikideshi, the only one who seemed to be willing to talk about the situation. "You said 'not yet'. What would I need to do?"

There was a loud snapping noise. Doumeki turned around to see the wooden pointer broken under Kimihiro's hands. "Nothing." His voice was sharp with anger. "You have the _potential_ to be an exorcist. It will happen in its own time or not at all. Such a thing cannot be forced." He glared at Hikideshi.

Doumeki glanced at the Hikideshi, but the butler was silent. He thought over the situation, trying to keep a hold on the anger that bubbled below. "How long have you known?"

A slightly panicked look slid over Kimihiro's face before it smoothed into calm white lines. "For a while." His dark blue eyes had darkened. "I suspected the first time I saw you."

xXx

1) Mon are traditional Japanese crests. I'll be using the same stylised format for all crests, the originals for Japanese names (if I get that reference book in time drool) and adaptations for the European ones (they need a bit of livening up .).

2) The traditional five elements (godai) in Japanese philosophy comprise of earth, water, fire, wind and sky. They're normally arranged so sky would be in the centre, air to the north, fire to the east, earth to the south and water to the west. I've done away with sky (though the other translation for ku – 'void' does fit in well) and changed the arrangement. Trust me grin I've done it for a good reason. Several of them XD

xXx


	48. Concealing Mists V

ENTWINING FATES:

CONCEALING MISTS

V

Doumeki hadn't known. Kimihiro had thought that he had at least suspected. After all, Doumeki had always been moving to protect him in the presence of spirits or laid a hand on him to dispel their effects. That it hadn't been with knowledge of his own potential - one half of Kimihiro's mind was wondering at the sheer idiocy of his actions while the other was frozen in disbelief.

He hadn't known. Despite all his training as Keeper. Despite the fact that Haruka had been an exorcist and it was common for such ability to follow bloodlines. It was becoming clear that Doumeki had gaping holes in his knowledge of the supernatural world.

And most alarming of all was that Haruka hadn't told Doumeki of the possibility when the previous Keeper had told Kimihiro. Haruka had made it a cornerstone of the promise Kimihiro had made. To uphold the Southern Ward at all costs. To ensure the safety of his grandson, the next Southern Keeper and Her Majesty's oldest son. To tell Doumeki _everything_ only if his latent powers fully manifested themselves.

Apparently there more that Haruka hadn't told Doumeki himself. But when could he have? He had been separated from his grandson when he was young, long before Doumeki would have been told about the possibility that he might become an exorcist. And from what Kimihiro knew, they had not seen much of each other since - and at that point telling him would have been difficult. For several reasons.

But now Doumeki was willing to do what he could to fulfil his potential. A prospect that had Kimihiro reacting more strongly than he would have imagined.

Kimihiro was trying to work out why the thought of Doumeki attempting to access his dormant warding powers had him so upset. At first it was an instinctive refusal. There _were_ methods that been attempted in the past with varying success. But having his own sight tampered with, Kimihiro was not going to allow any other to be attempted to Doumeki.

And the prince was stubborn enough to attempt it if he thought it would work.

But there was another fear, Kimihiro realized. He didn't have the power to protect the fledgling Keeper. The only fully-fledged exorcist he trusted, who was still alive, stood on the other side of the map table. And Hikideshi couldn't leave the mansion. Nor would he likely have taken up the task of guarding the prince as he learnt. Hikideshi had made it clear that his protection lay with the Watanuki line. A loyalty so firm it was daunting when Kimihiro thought about it.

And with Haruka gone, there was no one else. It had all come down to him. Duty and his word gave him no choice. And Kimhiro was absolutely terrified at times like now, when he contemplated the enormity of it.

But as daunting as it was, it all paled in the face of Doumeki's angry regard. It was a distant chill that was only emphasised by the absence of the hand on his shoulder.

He had a right to be angry. Of what Kimihiro was keeping from him, Doumeki's latent exorcist powers were the least of it. He felt slightly ill simply thinking about it. But it was what he had to do. The alternatives were worse.

He met Doumeki's stare as best he could. It was only when Doumeki's eyes narrowed further, that Kimihiro realized that he had adopted the blank expression he used with difficult clients. Something he knew Doumeki didn't like.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Doumeki's voice was quiet but there was a current of anger running through it.

He found himself explaining further. "I wasn't certain until recently." At Lady Fukao's auction, to be precise. But he had known of the possibility before that. Haruka had told him. He had simply been waiting for Doumeki's appearance to confirm it.

"Most exorcists show signs before they become adults." Hikideshi spoke up unexpectedly. "It's rare for such abilities to develop later in life." It put his actions in a better light but Kimihiro didn't feel any better about the situation.

Doumeki's frown lightened a fraction, his pale eyes flicking between them both. "And in my case?"

Hikideshi's dark gaze was assessing. "It's highly probable you will be an exception, Your Grace."

Highly probable. It was practically a guarantee from Hikideshi.

In a way it would be easier if the Keeper never became an exorcist. Doumeki wasn't the sceptical man who had first walked into the mansion. He had gone from firm disbelief to actively involving himself with the second world. So much so that he was making himself a target. His ignorance had kept him safe until now. When he had been unaware, he had made no move, drawn no attention to himself. Doumeki had already escaped a powerful elemental spirit in the Canar Relic, a situation that had strained Kimihiro's abilities to their limits. It would only get worse in the future. Sooner or later the spirits that followed Kimihiro would notice the prince at his side.

And once Doumeki was an exorcist, there would be no stopping him from entering the fray.

Hikideshi was watching them both closely. His eyes caught Kimihiro's for a moment before he turned back to the Keeper. "Because it's so late, it is likely to happen quickly rather than gradually." Something flashed through his eyes too fast to decipher. "Contact with His Lordship will not have helped the matter."

Kimihiro sent the butler a perturbed glance as Doumeki's gaze turned back to him. Was Hikideshi referring to the prince's increasing contact with the second world? Or was it something else?

"Likely you have already noticed changes." Hikideshi was thoughtful. "I will retrieve something to help guide you." His eyes slid to Kimihiro, seeking permission.

Kimihiro nodded.

Hikideshi quietly left the room, leaving an uncomfortable silence behind him. It was an angry, almost hurt silence. A silence that Kimihiro found was curiously painful as it continued to stretch out. He had never thought that he would come to care about Doumeki.

Before Haruka had died, Kimihiro had seen the prince once or twice from a distance. He didn't attend functions at the palace for good reason - members of the Watanuki line were no longer welcome there - but there had been occasions where Doumeki had had attended social functions held outside the palace walls. And Kimihiro had caught a glimpse or two of the silent prince who never smiled. Except for his looks, he had born no resemblance to Haruka at all. He was more like his mother; distant and angry.

And guiltily Kimihiro had wondered what he would have been like if things had been different. If his presence had not caused the rift between Keeper and Crown. If it had not caused much more than that.

It was best that they never met. That was what he had thought.

Years later when news of Haruka's death reached him as he was still recovering from the latest disaster that had struck, Kimihiro had clung to the promise he had made the older man. He would ensure the Southern Ward would remain, that his grandson would be protected. If it had been anyone else but Haruka, Kimihiro would have been inclined to think the promise was as simple as that. But he was certain the older man had seen something that made it vital to the survival of the city.

Kimihiro had withdrawn to his estate. With Haruka gone, he was unable to move around as freely as he once did. He had lost one of his most potent protections, against both political and supernatural threats, and the court had made it clear that he wasn't welcome in the social circuit. It was safest to wait, to deal with problems within the protections of his estate. Venturing out only rarely when the situation was too grave to ignore.

He had heard the news that the prince had abdicated in favour of his younger brother, had taken up the duty of his father's line and become Southern Keeper. He had filled the void that Haruka had left, wresting the Ward from the caretakers assigned by the throne. Kimihiro had waited for the new Keeper to come to seek him out as Haruka said he would. But he didn't. Nor were there many changes at the Ward. The traditional duties on the grounds were carried out but none of the other tasks Haruka had done to guard against the second world. It was as if the new Keeper didn't know about the supernatural world at all.

As years passed, Kimihiro began to doubt whether the prince would come to the mansion. The lord bent his efforts to his duty, taking care of what problems came to his door, seeking Yuuko's aid when the situation was beyond his means. He was so caught up in his work that it was somewhat of a surprise when the sceptical prince had suddenly appeared on his doorstep nearly six years after his instatement as Keeper.

Kimihiro watched Doumeki staring down at the map, one hand resting on the table, the other clenched at his side. The sight - seeing Doumeki so upset when he was usually expressionless - was almost painful. All the more so when Kimihiro was the one who had caused it.

Unlikely as the idea seemed, he had come to care about Doumeki himself. Not the prince. Not the Keeper. The annoying, sometimes infuriating man, who high-handedly invited himself over at whim, stuffed himself on the mansion's provisions and was lacking any semblance of good manners. Who ignored danger and public opinion, risking more than he knew, to ensure Kimihiro could safely travel beyond his estate boundaries. The naive fool who had arranged for the creation of a hideously expensive new guardian statue and tried to comfort him with sake and peppermints.

Kimihiro had no idea how he'd managed it but Doumeki had worked his way into his affections. Simply by being there and stubbornly refusing to budge. There had to be something wrong with him but he considered Doumeki a friend.

And he couldn't leave things as they were.

Kimihiro didn't know what to say so, before he could think about what he was doing, he hesitantly reached out and covered the hand Doumeki rested on the table with his own. Not quite looking at Doumeki as he did so.

Doumeki looked up at the touch only to blink when he realized that it was Kimihiro's hand that rested on his own. His eyes rose to Kimihiro's face.

Kimihiro avoided the intent gaze, uncomfortable under that intent regard. "I'm sorry." For not saying anything earlier. For still staying silent. It was hard to say but Doumeki needed to hear it.

Doumeki didn't say anything and he kept talking. Anything to break the sharp silence. "The book Hikideshi is getting should explain it better that I can. And if you notice anything-" Kimihiro began to lift his hand, gaze still averted. It felt strange to have Doumeki's motionless beneath his.

Doumeki's hand caught his own before it could reach his side. "I'll tell you." Kimihiro's eyes finally rose to meet the gold stare that was fixed on his face. The cold anger had receded. The eyes that met his were no longer filled with barely constrained anger. It had vanished to be replaced with by something that made Kimihiro's heart speed up.

Doumeki's other hand lifted, fingers reaching to brush Kimihiro's right temple. "If you tell me when something's wrong."

Kimihiro froze at the touch, the eyes staring into his own. Somehow unable to look away from the bright gold stare.

There was a small cough from the doorway. Hikideshi.

Kimihiro wrenched his hand from Doumeki's and turned away, trying to hide the heat rushing to his face. It was embarrassing for Hikideshi to walk in when they were staring into each other eyes like lovesi-

Kimihiro's heart skipped a beat and slammed on unevenly, his face burning. He didn't just think that.

Hikideshi's face was blanker that it usually was when he walked into the room. A decent-sized book bound in silver-embossed black leather was held in his hands. "Your Lordship." His voice was formal but Kimihiro could hear the hint of amusement that traced through it.

Kimihiro practically snatched the book from Hikideshi's grip and thrust it into Doumeki's hands. "Read this." He wasn't looking at Doumeki's face. "And if you have any questions, ask."

Doumeki took the book and nodded. For some inexplicable reason he seemed to have regained his usual outlook, anger having vanished entirely. The slight curve to his lips might have even been called a smile.

Kimihiro fell somewhat better at the sight even as a thread of irritation started to rise in him. He didn't see what was so amusing about the situation.

xXx

The book was a light weight in his hand as Doumeki watched the familiar spark that was building in Kimihiro's eyes. It made it hard to tell whether the colour in his face was the result of embarrassment or anger. Doumeki expected it was a mixture of both.

He watched with amusement as Kimihiro shifted uncomfortably next to the table, glaring down at the map on its surface. Carefully not looking at Doumeki or Hikideshi, who had taken up his former position on the other side of the table. The butler was blank-faced but Doumeki got the feeling he was amused. It was clear Kimihiro could sense it, too – when he wasn't glaring at the map, it was Hikideshi who was the focus of his anger.

Doumeki was tempted to prolong it by reaching out a hand to cover one of the white-knuckled fists or but the memory of Kimihiro's cool hand on his stopped him.

His anger had vanished at that hesitant touch.

He hadn't expected that Kimihiro would have reached out to him like that. Hesitant and nervous but clearly determined. It was the fact that Kimihiro had reached out for a personal reason rather than through duty that touched him. Even if he didn't attach the same significance to the gesture that Doumeki did, it was still clear that Kimihiro did mean more than a simple physical touch. He had been genuinely concerned.

And after such a display, Doumeki could hardly resist reaching out in turn. Even if it had turned into something more than he had originally intended. But Kimihiro tended to do that to him – Doumeki found himself doing things he would never even thought of before he met the pale lord.

But Kimihiro hadn't pushed him away. And his embarrassment suggested he knew there was more to Doumeki's actions as well. Which was why Doumeki was carefully giving him space, something Hikideshi's hints suggested was the wisest course.

His gaze lowered to the map. "And the girl?" Kimihiro had promised to explain it.

Kimihiro's gaze snapped towards him. For a few minutes he simply stared at Doumeki as if he couldn't believe that the Keeper was changing the subject. But as the question sunk in, Kimihiro became grim. "She was killed for the sole purpose of ending the water spirit residing in the lake. In an effort to destabilize the Southern Ward. It's the work of someone who is trying to break apart the protections of the city." He hesitated, clearly troubled. "Possibly Him."

"Him?" He had heard Kimihiro speak of Them, the spirits that have been expelled outside the city, but never a spirit in particular.

Kimihiro's eyes flickered. "A powerful goryo. One of those expelled shortly after the founding of the capital." His shoulders hunched.

That caught Doumeki's attention. Kimihiro was wearing an almost blank expression, a tense white façade that concealed his unease poorly. In was an expression he wore when he didn't want to discuss something but this time it wasn't a full-faced mask. His true feelings showed in his eyes, a dark weariness that was edged with fear.

Doumeki didn't like it.

"Can you say for sure?"

Kimihiro frowned. "A number of beings, spirits or humans could be responsible. But few of them would know how to do what was done to the girl. To poison a water spirit takes specific knowledge and power. No elemental would sit quietly while its territory was being attacked. Certainly not if something was attempting to kill the elemental itself." He paused, "Ultimately They have the most cause to see the wards fail. They've been seeking entrance to the city for centuries."

Kimihiro's eyes grew distant. "There is evidence that suggests He had been loose. Not in the city – that was never confirmed – but just outside. It's possible that He managed to find a weakness in the wards and slip inside unnoticed."

Slip inside. Doumeki knew it couldn't be so simple. Not with the layers within layers of protections that protected the city. He frowned. He didn't like the way Kimihiro referred to the goryo. Him. It was both fearful and familiar address.

"So what should we do?" It was obvious that Kimihiro wasn't simply going to ignore the problem. And Doumeki wasn't going to let him act on his own.

Kimihiro shot him a glance that had a faint edge of annoyance to it, as if he had heard Doumeki's thoughts. "What we have been." He seemed unaware that he used 'we'. "Counter what can be countered and maintain the wards. But now that there's the possibility of a goryo trying to break them, we have to look for anymore places He's tried. We're going to have to check all the supports of the Southern Ward – it still stands but there might be damage elsewhere."

"This afternoon?" Doumeki wasn't inclined to let any more time pass.

Kimihiro pinned him with a narrow stare. "You have the last rites for Lord Matoke this afternoon. Your usual duties are just as important in maintaining the wards." He glanced down at the map. "Tomorrow. It's been six years. Another night isn't going to make much more difference."

The idea of waiting didn't sit well with him but Doumeki remained silent. It would at least give him time to talk with Alastaire and organize for the girl's bones to be brought to the Southern Ward. And ask Alastaire about what they could do to patrol the Southern Quarter more closely.

Kimihiro might be acting alone but Doumeki had more resources to call on.

xXx

"You didn't tell His Grace about the Serpent." Hikideshi's voice was bland as he gathered up a pen, indicating neither approval nor condemnation.

After arranging to meet early the next morning, Doumeki had left. Kimihiro found his compliance somewhat suspicious but was reassured that Doumeki would remain in the Ward for the rest of the day. The rites for Lord Matoke would take hours and had to be complete at sunset. Doumeki would be occupied.

Kimihiro's eyes now traced the stretch of water that ran through the city, a sinuous line of bends that ran through every Quarter. "The Eastern Ward is dealing with it." They were better equipped to deal with the situation than the Southern Ward was at the moment.

Hikideshi shot him a look but said nothing more. He knew why Kimihiro was staying silent. It touched on things he wasn't able to talk about.

"The chief warden is a pivot." Kimihiro commented as he watched Hikideshi lean over the half scrolled map. "If it wasn't for the charm he carried, Lord Woodrow would be riddled with monoke."

"The Woodrows have always been full of surprises." There was an amused note to Hikideshi's words. "I am certain His Grace will come to no harm in his company."

Kimihiro shot the butler a sharp look. He didn't find anything amusing about the situation.

But Hikideshi ignored his master's disapproval, concentrating on the task at hand. With the several deft strokes he had drawn a mark next to the circle that represented Highbridge. One identical to the marks that lay to the south-west of the city.

Kimihiro's eyes fell on the mark that Hikideshi had neatly inscribed. A black cross. The first that had been inscribed within the circle of the city. "So it is His work." He had thought as much. He just hadn't wanted to believe it. For Him to be in the city six years ago meant that he had been free to do as he liked in the intervening years. Unchecked except for the lines and wards that still held against him. But that was cold comfort.

Hikideshi seemed to read his mind. "His Highness' move must have been unexpected. Otherwise the Southern Ward would have fallen by now."

So Doumeki had acted as a bolster for the Southern Ward. It was true of all Keepers, no matter their natural abilities – it was accomplished through the rituals and duties they carried out every day to strengthen the Ward in their keeping and bolster their protections. With Doumeki's latent warding abilities, the effect would have been multiplied. Even with the loss of support from Highbridge, it was as if the Southern Ward was as strong as ever.

"But He wouldn't have stayed still in the meantime." Hikideshi was scanning the map with a narrowed gaze. His voice grew quieter. "He never was one for simply sitting back and letting things happen."

"And He's been in the wards all this time." Kimihiro felt a chill as he said it. How many of the marks within the city were result of His moves? His hand rose to his right eye, pressing it to try and relieve the ache that had overtaken it. Kimihiro knew He would delight in causing as much destruction as He could. Would view tearing the city apart as part of one big game.

Hikideshi's black eyes were on the marks in the centre of the circle. "It's hard to separate what is deliberate act from coincidence." His eyes lifted, narrowing as his gaze grew distant. "Sometimes they can be both."

Hikideshi's words were chilling. Just the passage of a powerful goryo through the city was enough to wake things that had been resting below the surface. And if a goryo was deliberately seeking to loosen the wards... It was a wonder that things weren't worse than they were. The wards had to be stretched thin in places, weakened from the inside.

And it had all happened when he was unable to move freely through the city.

Kimihiro knew it was nonsense as soon as the thought crossed his mind. By himself he could only have influenced small matters and at great risk to himself. He couldn't have succeeded in holding Him out when it had taken an exorcist of Haruka's calibre to hold the city together for the last ten years of his life. And even the Keeper had had support, limited as it had been. Kimihiro would have likely perished in the attempt. The mansion would have fallen, and his people would have been laid bare to what hunted them, spirits and the living alike.

One of the supports for the Southern Ward would have vanished as well. His promise to Haruka would have been broken, shattered in a wind of a futile venture that ultimately would have served no purpose. He had done what he could under the circumstances. No matter how empty that left him.

But Kimihiro could no longer follow the safer course. Despite his less active role, he _had_ been making provisions and he now knew of a direct threat within the city. Kimihiro's gaze fell on the blight that marked the edge of the Hikideshi's map, the cross that overlaid the circle that represented Highbridge. There had been a major incursion and one he had to counter.

"We'll secure the Southern Ward first. That's our priority." And the most vital thing he could do. Not only did the Southern ward guard the path where They usually attacked but it kept Doumeki safe. One pale finger pointed to Kiyomizu, the second park supporting the ward. "We'll need to check the other park. Then the shrines and the road markers." The Southern Ward was still holding strong and Aurion's behaviour should tell them of any changes while they checked the other supports of the Southern Ward.

"As for the rest of the city," Kimihiro's eyes traced over the marks within the central circle. "We'll have to look at everything in the last twenty years again. With layouts of each year. We need to know what was happening when."

Hikideshi inclined his head. No doubt he had already been making plans to do so.

"Send word to everyone on the estate to take precautions, especially when they venture into the city." Kimihiro hesitated. "And ask them to find out as much as they can about anything out of the ordinary in the capital. Stories, rumours, everything." He didn't like having to ask it but he didn't have much of a choice at this point.

Kimihiro was quiet for a minute, thinking it over. "No," he said finally. "I'll ask them myself." He was asking his tenants to risk themselves - it was something that could only be done in person. "Send word to Yasu that I'll be coming to the shrine to talk to everyone." He met Hikideshi's gaze. "And I'll need to talk to Syaoran."

Hikideshi was silent, even though he knew what that meant. He knew what was at stake.

"When I return I'll write to the members of the other lines." Kimihiro continued. While the second lines were not as closely aligned as they once were, there was still a constant flow of information between them. It was somewhat of an embarrassment to admit his failure to protect his own Quarter but at this point Kimihiro wasn't worried about appearances. While he had warned them in the past that _something_ was loose, he hadn't known what it was.

Vague warnings could be pushed aside. News of a goryo within the city could not. It was a warning that might push the second lines to a more proactive stance. They couldn't simply hold the wards anymore. They had already been breeched.

Hikideshi nodded, "I'll send for the carriage." His normally watchful face had taken on an approving cast. Though he had given no indication of it before, it was now clear that the last few years of watching and waiting had worn on him. He was looking forward to the prospect of finally acting.

Kimihiro contemplated the map. There was only one more thing he could. He was going to have to see Yuuko.

xXx

Ehehehe. Someone's a bit more cranky than usual. I wonder why XD

Things are getting clearer now, aren't they? Lots of answers as I said. Clow's connection to Watanuki (at least one of you saw that coming XD), further insight into Haruka's relationship with Kimihiro, Alastaire and Kimihiro finally met (huzzah! Doumeki you're in for it now XD), more sinister goings on (been busy, haven't you, my dark fellow? XD) and just how long Kimihiro has been keeping an eye on Doumeki...

And finally some of the threat is clear. The pieces are on the board! Let the games begin! XD /Sorry. Couldn't resist that./

The next big instalment is Faltering Protections which should be closely followed by False Physician /evil grin/ Kimihiro's on the move. Expect to see more of the city in the future XD

xXx

And you all owe this appearing now to Angelic-Fayth. She made the most gorgeous fanart and I was inspired to fast-track my editing to get it up. Please have a look at this wonderful piece (link to her gallery is in my profile) and leave a comment :D

xXx


	49. Faltering Protections I

AN: Late, but only by a few days

**Anonymous Replies:**

**Smiles:** You're welcome! Sorry about that - I was a bit under the weather there for a while. It's wonderful that you're enjoying my work! You don't need to worry about that - I'm not going to stop writing before it's done.

**Aeris:** Wonderful! Hahaha! The entire story? I'm afraid I couldn't give you that now if I wanted to - there's a fair way to go XD I love tying things in together XD I'm glad to hear that - I can't write love-in-two-chapters. Nor author-forced love. Persuasion is more fun than force XD Kimihiro, helpless? LOL. Have I been giving that impression? At the moment he's the least helpless of the cast XD I don't think Doumeki has a choice in this XD

**Custard Apple:** You're welcome! That's great - I do try to answer questions...eventually XD I see :D You're not alone in that XD

As for those I haven't replied to yet, 's been booting me everytime I try. Since it would take up too much space here, I'll sent them out to you as soon as I can.

AN: Late, but only by a few days. But worth it, I think :D. Originally I was going to cut this piece but I figured I was writing it for a reason XD And then it grew . Oh well, it expands the horizon somewhat :D And after this, I don't have to explain things for a while (evil grin)

ENTWINING FATES:

FALTERING PROTECTIONS

I

Upon receiving word that a gathering of his tenants would be easier later in the day, Kimihiro turned his attention to writing letters to the other members of the second lines. Those to north and east were carried out rather quickly; he was on relatively good terms with the Iemura and Browning lines. Both missives were essentially a warning, that he had evidence to believe a goryo was within the city and attempting to pull down the wards. He trusted that they would pass on the warning to the Keepers of the north and east.

The last letter, however, he spent some time on. The current Lord Kuroda was a strange man. Like Kimihiro he was the last of his line. Kimihiro had only met him once or twice but it had been enough to see he suffered from the curse which had inflicted his line for centuries. One glance at his pained, weary eyes had been enough. The sudden rage that had erupted when Kimihiro had carelessly made a reference to the past had only confirmed it. Lord Kuroda was, like the rest of his forbearers, an unsteady flame that sparked and guttered randomly.

Kimihiro stared down at the lines he had written - a carefully worded warning and request for aid - but abruptly crumpled the poor attempt. He reached for another sheet of paper to try again. It soon joined the first missive. In the end he simply wrote something similarly worded to what he had the other lines. The news was grievous and couching it in careful words wasn't going to make a difference.

He sealed the letters with red wax, impressed with his personal seal. The dragon wrapped around the fragile cherry blossom, its position deceptively relaxed yet poised for action at the same time. The impression stared up at him as he lifted the elegant cylinder. In this regard, at least, he had done all he could.

It was mid-afternoon by the time Kimihiro descended the staircase to the foyer. Hikideshi was waiting for him and Kimihiro handed him the three sealed letters. "They need to be delivered before nightfall." In person, that meant, during light when the risk to the messengers was less. Creatures of the supernatural world were always stronger at night when the world they had crossed into was full of shadows and darkness like themselves.

Hikideshi nodded, carefully taking the three missives and tucking them into a pocket. "The carriage is waiting. I've already told Kichirou and Itsuki what to expect." A small smile creased his lips. "Neither of them is willing to give up their positions."

Hikideshi had anticipated him as usual. Kimihiro had planned to offer them the choice of changing duties. The roles of driver and footman had already proved fatal in the past. But if they were determined, he wasn't going to insult them by pushing the issue - they knew the risks and had made their decision. Kimihiro had gotten better at accepting help and he knew that he couldn't take on everything by himself.

Hikideshi held out his coat and Kimihiro slipped his arms into the sleeves. As it settled on his shoulders, he felt a weight in one pocket. Kimihiro curiously slipped a hand inside to retrieve a pendant on a delicate silver chain. It was set in gold with the seal and ward that marked the facade of the mansion, one of the most powerful protections in the Watanuki repertoire.

"It once belonged to the Lady Kimiko Watanuki." The first lady of the line - it could only have been made by Clow himself. Hikideshi's face was grave. "It's time for it to be used again."

Kimihiro slowly ran a thumb over the design. It was a powerful protection - not only from outside threats but those from within. And there was only one person Hikideshi could intend it for. He nodded and slid it back into his pocket.

Hikideshi bowed his head and opened the door.

The cold air hit him straight away and Kimihiro had the sudden wish that Doumeki was with him. He wasn't as cold when Doumeki was with him - the Keeper was an effective windbreak. He hurried down the front steps towards the carriage only to stop abruptly halfway. Itsuki and Kichirou were there but so was someone else. An older man with grey hair who stood talking to them both. Yasu, the head priest of the shrine on his estate.

Kimihiro shot a glance back up the stairs but the door had already closed, sealing the mansion. He frowned, and started towards the carriage. Hikideshi wasn't taking any chances - he had arranged for extra protection for the short journey. Clearly, the butler had decided it was needed in the current situation. A worrying thought.

The three men stopped talking as he approached, giving him small respective bows. Itsuki was looking more grim that usual and Kichirou was completely sober, worry showing in his eyes as he looked at his lord. It didn't take much to see that they had been talking about the current situation.

"My lord." Yasu came forward to clasp his hand. His grip was strong and calloused, revealing that he did more than the usual priestly duties. "It's good to see you well." There was more to the simple greeting. Yasu's visits were often when his lord was too sick to come to him.

"And you as well." Despite the grey hair and lines, Yasu looked much as he had when Kimihiro was young: calm and solid, facing whatever came with a quiet confidence that stemmed from an unshakable belief in those around him. It was comforting to have him close; a familiar warmth that still warded away the dark.

Yasu smiled as if he knew what his lord was thinking. "I sent out word and everyone will be gathering in the shrine." He let go of Kimihiro's hand and indicated the carriage. "Perhaps we can talk on the way?" Kichirou immediately moved to open the carriage door even as Itsuki climbed to his perch to gather up the reins. It was clear that they all wanted him in the safety of the cabin. Hikideshi must have given them additional orders. Kimihiro supposed that he had better get used to it.

He nodded and climbed into the carriage, sending Kichirou what he hoped was a reassuring look. Kimihiro settled against the richly upholstered seats, the dark coils on blue reassuring. Yasu took a seat on the opposite bench, looking as comfortable in the rich surroundings as he did in his shrine. But it wasn't until Kichirou had shut the door that he started talking.

"Hikideshi said that He was in the city." Yasu was grave but he didn't seem particularly alarmed at the prospect. He had faced similar threats in the past. "I take it that you're going to talk with everyone about it."

Kimihiro nodded. "He's been making moves unchecked and I can't allow it any longer." He frowned, fingers tightening their grip in his lap. "It's possible that my future actions will draw attacks on the estate." It was more than a possibility. The loss of the guardian statue at the gate was a weakness that would be exploited sooner or later.

The carriage suddenly jolted into action as Itsuki urged the team into a trot and Kimihiro set a steadying hand against the seat. "There will be increasing risk to those who venture into the city." He would have no qualms in attacking Kimihiro's tenants even though they had nothing to do with the vendetta against the Watanuki line. The connection with Kimihiro was enough. He would seek to destroy anyone linked with him and likely He would enjoy it.

Yasu didn't protest the assessment. He was silent for a few moments, thinking over Kimihiro's words. "As long as the second boundary holds, the village should be safe. The spirits that protect the land haven't weakened." He glanced out the window, watching the passing hedges as they rolled down the drive. "When the boundary was damaged, two minor spirits encroached on their territory. They destroyed one of them."

Hikideshi hadn't told him there had been more than one. "And the other?"

Yasu turned to meet Kimihiro's gaze. His smile widened fractionally, his calm eyes warming. "Syaoran dealt with the other one."

Kimihiro blinked. "By himself?" He hadn't known that the young man was so far along.

The older man nodded. "Since the damage to the boundary, he's been anxious to improve. Ryouta told me that soon there will be little more he can teach him." He was pleased at the prospect where other men would have been angered at the thought of their son's skills being surpassed.

Kimihiro recalled the portable ward that had been broken after encountering Lady Fukao. "But he's not ready yet."

Yasu's smile hadn't faltered. "That would depend on what you intend."

There was silence within the cabin, Kimihiro deep in thought and Yasu content to let him be. It wasn't until the carriage left the main drive to turn north that the older man spoke again.

"And His Highness?" Yasu's calm hadn't dissipated but there was curiosity in his gaze. "What do you intend to do?"

Kimihiro blinked as he surfaced from his thoughts, eyes widening slightly as he registered the other man's words. There was a slight pause before he answered. "He can't go without training. I can at least teach him the basics while I find someone appropriate."

Yasu nodded as if his words had confirmed something.

But Kimihiro missed it, thoughts clearly elsewhere. "It's all I can do for now." He stared out the window, silent for a few moments. "How many people do you think will come? It was short notice."

Yasu merely smiled.

xXx

Everyone had come.

Clow had somehow foreseen the shrine would someday become a meeting hall for the village and it had been built along proportions more suited to a city than a village. It was just large enough to fit the several hundred tenants that were crammed into the large hall. Yasu had even opened up the partitions closing off the offering hall to allow for more room. The silver vessels stood gleaming in the flickering lights of the lanterns that lit the large space, sending shifting shadows across the red beams and the people settled on the tatami mats below.

Kimihiro looked out at all the expectant faces that were turned towards him. The nodding heads of children held in laps, the excited eyes of the young and the more cautious, expectant gazes of parents and grandparents. All of them bundled up in layers of clothing against the chill in the hall. He could see Itsuki and Kichirou settled to one side of the hall with Miku, Itsuki's daughter. The young woman had her arm around Thomas, the young boy who had been Lady Halstead's stableboy. She glanced up to catch Kimihiro's gaze and gave him an encouraging smile.

Kimihiro's eyes moved back to the mass of waiting faces. "Thank you for coming." He was somewhat nervous in front of so many expectant gazes. "You all know what has been occurring the city within recent years. Most of you have seen the effects for yourself." He paused. "Part of the reason for this has now become clear. There is a powerful spirit moving through the city, seeking to break the Wards."

There were fearful and grim glances.

But Kimihiro hadn't finished. "A goryo. One which has a personal grievance against the Watanuki line."

There was a soft sigh of the wind outside, clearly audible in the hushed silence that reigned in the hall.

"The estate has already been attacked. It's likely things will get worse in the future. Even venturing into the city may be dangerous because you have been marked as coming from these estates." It was painful to admit the shortcoming. That he might not be able to protect them as he had promised. "If any of you feel unsafe here, I will make arrangements to find you somewhere to go." He still had some favours that he could collect on in order to see it was done.

"And where would we go?" A woman slowly stood up. She had a shawl over her head that obscured her face but she stood with quiet dignity. A strong presence that had all eyes turning towards her.

She slowly removed the shawl. The soft wool was lifted away from a patchwork of red skin that covered her head and part of her neck. The features of her face were flawless: beautiful grey eyes over high cheekbones and a small mouth that contrasted with her pale skin. It only made the burn scars that covered her scalp more shocking. "Where else would someone else like me be accepted? Who else would take in me and my children?" She met Kimihiro's eyes steadily.

Kimihiro remembered her gaze. Remembered when a half-delirious woman had appeared on his estate, two small children in tow. Fearful of his reputation but more fearful of what she had fled. Calanthe had been the mistress of Lord Satoya, until the fateful night he had set her hair on fire in a drunken game. Fearing for her children's lives, she had fled, going to the only place she thought he could not reach. The estates of a rumoured madman who was reputed to accept all sorts of strange servants into his service.

Kimihiro had immediately taken her in. And remained silent about her whereabouts despite the threats that were made when the lord had finally traced her to the Watanuki estate.

Calanthe had found like many others before her that the reality behind the rumours was quite different. Lord Watanuki was not mad so much as focused on such a different reality that his actions were beyond the scope of his fellow noble's experience. His servants were strange only because they shared their master's view of the world - they were aware of the second world that overlaid their own and had been labelled misfits because of it. To her surprise, the scarred woman had been accepted by them all. Kimihiro's tenants were no strangers to hardship, whether it stem from the material world and the unseen one that overlapped it. But perhaps the greatest surprise in store for the former mistress had been when Makoto, Yasu's oldest son and the village's assistant priest, had announced his attachment.

"You gave us a place to live, my lord." She glanced down at Makoto who was sitting at her side. The two small blond children he held in his lap. Her gaze was firm when it turned to Kimihiro. "We know the dangers. And we choose to stand with you."

There was a murmur of agreement in the hall. A growing noise that was suddenly broken as one of Kimihiro's self-appointed information-gatherers, a young man in his late teens, shot to his feet. "We're with you, my lord!"

Kimihiro started at the loud declaration, eyes moving towards the young man. The youngest of five siblings, Eamon was not normally given to loud outbursts. His family had arrived on the estate several generations ago, expelled from their homes when it became clear an elemental had taken exception to their presence. The problem had been dealt with long ago but despite the safety his family now enjoyed, or perhaps because of it, Eamon had been eager to do something about the deterioration they had all seen in recent years. With the ability to venture outside the estate in relative safety, he had joined the self-appointed group as soon as his mother had given permission.

The young man's face was earnest now, his voice lowering to a reasonable level that could be heard by everyone in the shrine. "You can't do everything on your own. Not all of us can help you but at least let those of us who are able to, do something for you." He was somewhat red-faced after his sudden declaration but he bravely persevered, what he wanted to say more important than the embarrassment he faced at being the centre of attention. "Let us help, my lord! It's unbearable for you come to harm for our sake." His eyes were locked on Kimihiro's and his voice lowered to a near whisper that was still clearly audible. "It isn't right. For you or for us."

The attention of everyone in the hall shifted to their lord, waiting for a response, but Kimihiro found himself unable to speak straight away. He had been foolish. He had regarded this as his fight and tried not to involve his people any more that they already were. But he could see now that they viewed the coming battle as their own. This was their home, their futures as well as his. And they were not simply content to let him face the danger in their stead.

"I accept your offer." Everybody in the hall seemed to take a deep breath at that. It was an official acceptance when their lord had never actively asked for aid before. "I need all the information I can get on disturbances in the capital. And that will mean that some of you will have to venture into the city."

His eyes fixed on Eamon, who was looking relieved but somewhat shaken after the actions he had taken. "But I will ask that you take all precautions." He meant the words not just for Eamon but every one of them. If any one of them came to harm because of his request- He couldn't bear the thought. "The goryo within the city is a vicious adversary and I don't want of any of you to fall into His hands."

Eamon looked nervous but nodded. "We know the situation's serious. But we want to try anyway." His companions, a mixture of young and old tenants, nodded from where they sat around him. Each of them had varying abilities which enabled them to avoid dangers of the supernatural world. And every one of them was prepared to risk their lives in order to aid him.

"The situation _is_ serious." Heads turned to see a man leaning against a wall, arms crossed over his chest. The murmurs died down as it became apparent who had spoken.

Takahiro acted as the bailiff for the village, overseeing the estate accounts and the selling of spices that were the estate's main produce. The result of a minor lord's infidelity with a servant, he had been accepted into his father's household in the trusted position of steward. Unfortunately, his mixed parentage had given rise to something more than an affinity for accounting. Takahiro was able to sense the inclinations of a person through their writing. Dealing with accounts as he had been, Takahiro had been unable to ignore the signs of embezzlement that were written throughout the trading accounts of which he was set in charge. However, his father had not believed the accusations against one of his trusted friends and Takahiro had been turned out of the household.

Takahiro pushed away from the wall and stood to address Kimihiro head-on. "My lord, with the threat facing us, our entire existence is threatened. If we can no longer leave the estates, how will be able to get our produce to the markets or even buy the necessities that we can't produce ourselves?" The Watanuki estate was self-sufficient to some degree but it could only survive in isolation for so long.

There was a slight silence as the people gathered in the hall took in his words. Kimihiro could see the glances that were exchanged, hear the low whispers.

"We can survive the winter but come spring and summer, we will have to see our crops sold. If it were just one wagonload we could manage with the protections of those among us." His eyes went briefly to Eamon and the others seated near him. "But it is more than one wagon and the risk will be great. Greater, perhaps than what should be risked at such a time." His eyes returned to Kimihiro, the earnest question in his eyes mirroring the one in his words. "So how will we be able to carry on under the circumstances?"

Kimihiro had expected the question. Was glad to hear it because it meant that Takahiro was thinking in terms of the long run. "I plan to use the river. It's a short distance to Lady Nagano's estate. The lady has agreed to the hiring of her barges." For a fee. But it was a small consideration in exchange for his people's safety.

Takahiro knew that it wouldn't have come cheaply, either. His eyebrows had lowered in a frown.

"Takahiro, you can come and discuss it with me later." Kimihiro's gaze swept the gathered tenants. "The some applies to anyone who has any suggestions or questions. Itsuki and Kichirou will bring you to the mansion where you can discuss any matter with Hikideshi or myself."

There was a lightening of mood at his words. Just the mention of Hikideshi's name reminded everyone of the powerful protections that guarded the estate.

An old woman who was sitting at the front of the hall slowly got to her feet. Kimihiro recognized her immediately; Noa, Yasu's mother. With her thinning white hair and wrinkled face, she looked like a witch. An assessment that wasn't too far from the truth. She pinned Kimihiro with a stern stare. "It's about time you asked for help!" She smiled, her face a net of wrinkles drawn up. "I'm getting old here!"

When the surprised laughter faded from the hall, she lifted her head proudly. "My family has lived on this estate for generations and we're not about to give up now." She lifted an arm to display a thin wrinkled hand. "My hands are old but they can still weave protections to keep this village safe. Goryo. Monoke. Elemental. We've faced them all." Her dark eyes fixed on Kimihiro. "You do what you have to, young man. We'll be fine."

There were nods around the hall. Vocal affirmatives as his tenants threw their support behind him. Those with connections to the second world and those without. Even though they must have been frightened by the thought of what they might face, they weren't going to leave him.

Fine. Kimihiro swallowed hard, trying to stop the stinging of his eyes. Yes they would. He would make certain of it.

His eyes settled on the young man who stood in the shadows along one wall of the hall, a shorter cloaked figure at his side. They would be safe. Even if he wasn't around to make it so.

xXx

Few of those in the hall left before they could speak a word to their lord. Kimihiro hadn't been among them for a while and they were eager to see him, to talk with him for a few short moments. He patiently received bows and greetings, seeing faces that had changed in his absence, children who had been born since he had last visited the village. Their lord patiently spent time with them all, amazed their devotion and slightly saddened by the thought that he had not been able to give them more. He had wanted to give them freedom to live their lives, not see them limited to the estate.

It wasn't until most of the people in the hall had dispersed that Syaoran finally came to talk to him. His brown eyes fixed on Kimihiro as he drew closer, the hand of his cloaked companion clasped in his own. Moving slowly to match the pace of her slower steps.

The remaining tenants saw him and drifted back to the other end of the hall to give them privacy. Calanthe, however, stopped in front of them, blocking their path. There was a short exchange of words - Syaoran's gaze flicked from Calanthe to Kimihiro and back again before he nodded. He said something to his companion before taking the hand he clasped and setting it in Calanthe's. The older woman smiled and led the cloaked woman carefully down the hall. Syaoran watched them for a few moments before turning to walk the last few meters that separated him from Kimihiro.

"Syaoran." Kimihiro held out his hand.

The young man took his forearm in a firm grip. "Lord Watanuki." His eyes searched the lord's, his grip tightened slightly at what he saw there and then Syaoran let go. "Sakura would like to talk to you."

Kimihiro glanced to the back of the hall where Calanthe's girls were hugging the new arrival. Sakura's hood was dislodged with the movement and fell back to reveal pale brown hair and sightless green eyes. She was smiling and embracing the small girls, hands on their backs. But Kimihiro could see something else. Something that made his eyes widen involuntarily. "I'd like that too." He glanced at Syaoran but he seemed oblivious.

Instead the young man was watching him sombrely, his dark eyes searching in his solemn face. "Yasu said that you wanted to see me." It wasn't a question. That Kimihiro had come to see him meant that the situation was dire.

Kimihiro laid one hand on his shoulder, his fingers looking pale and almost spindly on the solid brown of Syaoran's coat. "I need to ask something of you."

Syaoran's mouth was a grim but determined line. "We owe you our lives." He glanced over at Sakura and his eyes were resolute when they turned back to Kimihiro. "If it's within my power, I'll do it."

Kimihiro hadn't expected anything less but he couldn't help the smile that tugged at his lips. Syaoran insisted that a debt had to be repaid and took his duty seriously. Kimihiro had never planned to take advantage of it but now found that he had little choice. "I need you to protect them for me."

A grim, slightly disappointed look appeared on Syaoran's face. It wasn't what he had expected. From his expression, it was clear that he thought Kimihiro was not prepared to rely on him. And that Syaoran blamed his own short comings as the reason.

"At the moment the threat is here. When the time comes I will call you to my side." Kimihiro stared into his eyes, letting Syaoran see the truth of his words. "But until then-" Kimihiro's eyes drifted back to Sakura. She sensed his gaze and turned to give him a sweet smile. Kimihiro found himself smiling in return. "You'll be needed here."

Syaoran glanced sharply at him, sensing there was more to his words.

Kimihiro remained silent - if he didn't know yet, it wasn't Kimihiro's place to tell him.

"I need you to watch over them in my stead." His grip tightened on Syaoran's shoulder. "It's only a matter of time until the estate comes under attack." He paused. "And I may not be here to prevent it."

Syaoran knew what he was asking. His eyes had widened in alarm. "Lord Watanuki-"

"Kimihiro." He lifted his hand from Syaoran's shoulder with one last application of pressure.

Syaoran caught the forearm of the retreating hand. "Lor- _Kimihiro_." His voice was tense, urgent. "We need you to stay with us."

"I plan to." Kimihiro's smile was wry. "I'm simply taking precautions." But he could see that Syaoran wasn't reassured by his words. Kimihiro stared out into the hall, at the tenants who remained clustered at the far end talking to each other. Several children were running around, involved in some sort of game. "The safety of all these people is my responsibility. I am the one who offered them a safe haven and I am prepared to do all that I can to keep that promise." His eyes returned to Syaoran. The young man was staring at him, a conflicted expression on his face. "But I have other promises to keep as well. Things I can achieve only because you will ensure everyone's safety here."

Syaoran's eyes had widened slightly at his words. His eyes lowered briefly before rising, his hands clenching at his sides. "I won't let you down."

Kimihiro smiled gently. "I know." His eyes turned back to Sakura. "Sakura's waiting for us."

Syaoran glanced over as well and nodded silently, not protesting the diversion. He followed Kimihiro as he started to walk the length of the hall, a new determination etched into the lines of his body, expressed in each firm step.

Kimihiro smiled at the sight. Yasu had been right.

Sakura turned as they drew closer, face lightening with one of her sweet smiles. "Lord Watanuki." Her hands reached out towards him and Kimihiro carefully enclosed them with his own.

The touch confirmed what he had sensed and his smile widened. "Sakura. Syaoran said you wanted to talk to me."

One of her hands slipped from his grasp and rose to hover in front of his right eye. "I wanted to see that you were well." Her eyes were concerned. "Everyone was saying that you had been unwell again." She was frowning as she tried to determine whether he was alright.

Kimihiro reached up and pulled down her hand. "I have something for you." His hand had slipped into his jacket pocket and he gently placed the silver necklace in her hand.

Sakura's eyes had widened. Her fingers slowly tracing over the design, seeing by touch. "I can't accept this-"

"It's from Hikideshi." Kimihiro couldn't prevent himself from smiling. But Sakura had that effect on him. It was hard not to smile in her presence. "He would be upset if you didn't take it."

"But-" Her face was going red. She was clearly embarrassed to receive such a gift.

Syaoran reached over and took it from her hand. "You can thank him next time you visit." There was a gentle look in his eyes, which made him look younger, a look that was reserved for the young woman alone.

Sakura smiled and nodded. She had only met him a few times, but she liked Hikideshi a lot. The butler always visibly thawed when he was in her presence and treated the young woman like a princess.

Kimihiro watched Syaoran carefully fasten the necklace around his wife's neck and felt his smile fade slightly. He hoped that it would never be needed but it was a relief to see the two of them would be protected. Hopefully, the necklace would conceal Sakura and her child from unfriendly gazes. A child borne of such parents would be an irresistible prize.

His smile widened slightly. He wondered how long it would take Syaoran to realize that Sakura was with child. Or Sakura for that matter. They were so focused on each other that they hadn't yet realized there was another person about to come into their lives.

Kimihiro's gaze strayed to one of Calanthe's girls who was eyeing him shyly from behind her mother's skirts. He had spoken to her a few times in the past but it was clear she didn't remember him. He smiled at her and was rewarded by a curious look that led her to step out of her mother's shadow. And, when he made no threatening moves, a shy gap-toothed smile.

He was glad that he had come. It reminded him of what he was fighting for. And why what he was going to do was necessary.

xXx


	50. Faltering Protections II

ENTWINING FATES:

FALTERING PROTECTIONS

II

Doumeki opened the door to his study only to be pinned with an irritated pale stare. "I've been waiting for hours."

"You could have come back later." Doumeki was unapologetic. He finished drying his hair, letting the damp towel rest around his neck to prevent any stray drips from marring his kimono. It was a dark green, decorated with a simple yet elegant design of bright orange koi under ghostly white ripples of water. He had obviously taken the time to bathe and change out of the elaborate robes he had been wearing at Lord Motoke's last rites. Even though he knew that Alastaire had been waiting.

In truth, the rites had taken longer than usual. Kimihiro's words about the importance of his usual duties as Keeper had stayed with him. Doumeki had taken extra care in the rites - an action which had prompted Lord Matoke's heir to linger with words of appreciation. His tardiness was not intended to irritate Alastaire but, after the jokes at his expense that morning, it was an added bonus.

Alastaire was annoyed. "I tried to. Riku kept bringing me paperwork." He gestured at the desk he leaned on. "Somehow I get the feeling the old chap doesn't trust me to do my job."

Doumeki's eyes moved to the small pile of papers neatly stacked on the desk. He had been planning to give them to Alastaire to deal with in the next few days but Riku had apparently seized the opportunity to have it completed while the chief warden was waiting. In all likelihood, it would have taken Alastaire most of the afternoon. Which would explain Alastaire's mood. He disliked paperwork even more than he did boredom.

Doumeki smiled.

Alastaire's eyes narrowed at the change of expression and then a calculating look flashed over his face. "I didn't expect you to show up this morning." Alastaire was suddenly amused. Irritation suddenly forgotten in opportunity he now saw. "Especially not with Lord Watanuki."

Doumeki's smile faded into a wary expression but said nothing.

A sly look slid into Alastaire's eyes. "I wonder what you did to pry him out of his mansion. It must have been some incentive." Alastaire leaned back on the desk, arms crossing his chest. "Or maybe you've gotten further than I thought." He tilted his head to one side, studying Doumeki's expressionless face as if searching for some clue. "Things certainly seem to have progressed in your favour."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed slightly, pinning his cousin with a warning look.

One of Alastaire's eyebrows rose, an amused smile curving his lips. "It's not like I'm protesting your choice. You need to get out more and away from all this." He waved a languid hand at the study and the grounds outside the doors, the metallic embroidery of his cuff flashing. "If it takes someone like Lord Watanuki to do that-" Alastaire shrugged, ignoring the growing signs of irritation Doumeki was displaying. His teeth flashed in a mocking smile. "You always did have strange tastes."

"And you don't?" Doumeki's narrow stare hadn't wavered.

Alastaire's smile widened into a grin but otherwise ignored him. "I can see why he caught your attention, though. Not only is he prettier than most of the ladies at court, he's _unusual_ enough to keep you interested." His grin widened as his gaze fell to the desk drawers. "For quite a while if I'm not mistaken."

Doumeki's stare had intensified into a glare.

But it wasn't enough to stop Alastaire. "I take it I'm going to be invited to the celebrations?" The expression Doumeki was wearing suggested his cousin should drop the subject or loose an important appendage. Alastaire's hands rose in a defensive gesture as Doumeki's gaze bored into him. "Alright, I won't say anything more!" He was grinning as he said it. "Though if you keep bringing him along with you, you're going to make it hard for me."

Doumeki was still somewhat irritated. "He insisted on coming along."

Alastaire's grin returned briefly at that comment. Doumeki could practically read what he was thinking. But the chief warden's face resumed its customary amused lines. "It was interesting to finally see him in the flesh." He paused, voice becoming contemplative. "I didn't expect him to be so touchy about his parents, though."

Doumeki shot him a sharp glance. "And you're not?" Kimihiro wasn't the only one who was still caught up about a death of a parent. He knew one of the reasons Alastaire had accepted the offer to become chief warden was the opportunity to investigate his father's death. He had never been convinced it had been an accident.

Alastaire stared at him for a few minutes then bowed his head, trailing bangs falling across his face. "I suppose I deserved that," he muttered. He suddenly looked tired.

Doumeki took a perch on the edge of the desk next to him. "Kimihiro wasn't involved in the girl's death." It was a simple statement.

Alastaire's mouth quirked at the familiar address. "I know. I checked it out."

Doumeki shot him a sharp glance.

"Lord Watanuki was bedridden at the time. A sudden illness." Alastaire stared out the window at the garden, a forest of growing shadows illuminated by the occasional low-lying lantern. "Apparently a lot of his people were wearing worried faces at the time. They were afraid he was going to die."

Doumeki frowned, recalling what Kimihiro had said that morning about being too ill to attend Haruka's last rites. The girl's death had been nearly a year later. Had he been sick all that time?

"Fits and mysterious illnesses. Seeing ghosts and finding bodies." Alastaire cast him an amused glance. "You sure know how to pick them."

"It's a family trait," Doumeki commented wryly.

Alastaire was surprised into a laugh. "Touché." He suddenly grinned. "Though I can't argue with that at the moment. Mentioning the word 'marriage' is like a announcing a hunt at court."

"Any luck?"

Alastaire grinned. "That depends what you mean by luck. Aside from a rather interesting interlude behind a curtain at Lady Sandford's recent party, it's been somewhat tedious." He shot Doumeki a considering glance. "I'm beginning to see why you've remained unattached for so long. It's a bit like running from a pack of wolves - exhilarating and absolutely terrifying." He was grinning as he said it.

It was as Doumeki had suspected. Despite his complaints, Alastaire was having the time of his life.

"I was able to pick up a few interesting titbits, though." Alastaire sounded amused but there an edge to his voice that had Doumeki's attention turning back to his cousin.

Alastaire continued once he was sure that he had the Keeper's attention. "It seems that your mother's got some rather controversial bills in the works. I wasn't able to get the details, just that Lord Okuma was getting a bit uneasy. So you can imagine what that's about."

Doumeki frowned. Lord Okuma was one of his mother's ardent supporters. For him to be uneasy about a proposal suggested it was something that rocked even his solid devotion.

"There's been some disturbance in the north too. I ran into my northern counterpoint and he was looking distinctly cranky." Alastaire's smile widened. It was likely that he had taken some delight in badgering the man out of his current ill-humour, sucking him dry of information all the while. "Apparently Lord Durham has gone off east in search of hot springs and left him to deal with all the work. It seems that gala in the park was an impromptu send-off." His eyes were coldly distant above his smile. "I was wondering why Harriet hadn't come crawling back even with the lure of marriage."

It was unusual to say the least - Keepers were expected to remain within their Wards unless they were on official duty. Or at least they had once. "Who's his replacement?"

"His cousin, Lord Kenneth Durham." Alastaire frowned. "He's got a reputation for being too serious. Quiet, almost bland, from what I've been told." The frown receded into a slight smile. "Suitable for the job, one might say."

Doumeki shot him a sidelong glance.

The smile turned into a grin. "According to Dory, he keeps to the Ward and leaves all the warden business to him." Alastaire's voice became thoughtful. "They don't have as many exciting things going on like we do in the Southern Quarter but there have been some odd incidents. A theft at Lord Irving's recent celebration. A scandal involving the bastard branch of the Nemoto line." He shrugged. "I get the idea that the Northern wardens are more preoccupied with the hub rather than the incidents among the commons."

''As for east and west - nothing to report there. The old man is still running the western wardens like a regiment. I suppose it helps that most of them are ex-military." Alastaire grinned. "I keep getting told to mind my own business whenever I ask one of them. And being absolutely terrified of being involved in a duel, I let the matter drop."

Doumeki knew for a fact that Alastaire had already been involved in several clandestine duels (most of them involving angry lovers) and all of them had ended in his favour. If he had left the matter drop, it was most likely because he didn't think it was worth digging any deeper. "And the east?"

Alastaire sent him an ironic look. "I think Lady Heath still holds a grudge for that time I uprooted her bed of chrysanthemums. Whenever I venture in the Eastern Quarter, there are always a bunch of wardens following from a distance." The chief warden rolled his eyes. "It was nearly twenty years ago – it's not like I'm going to go on a botanical rampage."

Remembering a certain shrub Alastaire had taken his frustrations out on some years ago, Doumeki remained silent.

Alastaire's hand reached into his jacket pocket, withdrawing his coin, and his voice became serious. "But the east is nearly as tightly run as the west." The coin flipped in his fingers. "There were one or two things, though. A few months back a couple of vandals did a real job on one of the smaller shrines. The woman at the coffee house I was talking to was quite angry about it." His mouth quirked. "I'd fear for my life if I was the culprit." He suddenly paused as a thought occurred to him. "Though if I was caught by one of the eastern wardens," he mused, "I wouldn't mind too much." Alastaire turned to Doumeki and raised an eyebrow. "Is there a reason we don't have any female wardens?"

"We do." Doumeki gave him an irritated look. As chief warden, Alastaire knew all of the wardens under his command. "Hiroko and Ellis."

"Hiroko's already turned me down and Ellis looks too much like a man anyway. Neither of them counts." He seemed somewhat depressed, his voice regretful. "Maybe I should follow your lead and look elsewhere." He shot Doumeki a sly glance that contrasted sharply with his previous mournful tone.

Doumeki ignored that comment. "If you feel that strongly about it, you can open the enlistment again." The Wardens only took on new members in a three-week window once a year. It was a matter of cutting down paperwork, more than anything else. If Alastaire wanted more wardens then he was going to have to deal with it.

And Alastaire knew it. He regarded Doumeki with a slightly mutinous expression, the paperwork of the afternoon no doubt foremost in his mind.

Doumeki recalled Kimihiro's words. "We might more wardens in the future. I'm thinking of raising the number of enlistees this spring."

Alastaire frowned. He flipped the coin between his fingers. "'Keep it close.' Lady Fukao asked to look at it the other week. I don't know why but I refused her at the time." His eyes were curious as he glanced at Doumeki. "I don't suppose Lord Watanuki told you anything more?"

"He said you need to be more careful of your tongue."

Alastaire burst into laughter, gripping the coin in his fist to prevent dropping it. "A perfect match!" The words were half-choked. He hammered his thigh with a fist, unable to contain his hilarity, bent over as he laughed.

Doumeki watched him as the laughing fit continued, highly tempted to brain his cousin with the heavy paperweight that sat on the desk. A temptation that only strengthened as Alastaire showed no sign of stopping.

Alastaire finally straightened, catching his breath with a deep inhalation and grinned. "I can't wait for him to come into society again."

Doumeki wasn't particularly amused. "But that wasn't the only thing." He ignored the grin Alastaire was still wearing. "He said that the wardens would have to be careful in the future - that there was something loose within the city." Doumeki glanced out the window at the gardens that shielded the inner shrine from sight. "A goryo."

There was silence. Doumeki shifted his gaze to see Alastaire looking at him with an exasperated expression. "Doumeki, you were the one who was interested in the legends, not me. That doesn't tell me anything."

Alastaire had always been more interested in the battles rather than the lengthy discussions on the hierarchy of spirits and inhabitants of the second world. Doumeki remembered how he used to wander off to torment frogs and turtles in the pond while Doumeki sat listening to Haruka. "Traditionally goryo are powerful people who died unnaturally or in a state of resentment. They were said to harm people unless they were placated." He frowned as he heard his own words. The goryo Kimihiro had talked about had been banished from the city. It suggested that what it had wanted was something that no one had been willing to grant.

"According to Kimihiro, this one will be trying to break the wards to let others into the city." And from what Kimihiro wasn't telling him, Doumeki suspected it had some other plans involving Kimihiro as well. It was hard to say what alarmed him more.

"So you're telling me that there's some powerful ghost is inside the city and it's trying to destroy the Wards so more powerful ghosts can get in." Alastaire was looking at him doubtfully.

Doumeki gave him a look.

Alastaire rubbed his forehead. "I'd be laughing at anyone else if they were telling me this." He grimaced. "Of course you're the only person I know who would say such a thing." He raised an eyebrow. "I suppose there's something that can be done about it? Or are we doomed to an evil end as hordes of spirits take over the capital?"

Doumeki couldn't tell whether Alastaire believed his words or not. "We have to secure the shrines, the parks and the Ward."

Alastaire sighed. "You don't ask for much." His brow furrowed. "I suppose this is what those new orders were about. Marcus and some of the older wardens were angry when they caught some of the green tabs (1) joking about it." His frown deepened, eyes growing distant as the coin flicked through his fingers. "For it to be effective, we'd have to tighten our ties with the shrines. There's a bit of bad feeling there since the split. Wardens aren't seen as followers of the old ways anymore."

Doumeki was quiet for a moment. "I'm thinking of holding a festival."

The coin stopped. Alastaire turned to give him a searching stare. "When?" His voice didn't give away any of his thoughts.

Doumeki shrugged. "I don't know." He had no idea when his powers as an exorcist would manifest but he knew that the city needed a festival as soon as possible.

Alastaire frowned, coin beginning to flick through his fingers again. For a moment there was only the metallic flash of the bronze coin and then he began to speak. "Her Majesty would never countenance it - you'll never get a royal decree. Your only chance would be a unanimous agreement between all four Keepers. As it stands now, I doubt any of them would stand with you." Alastaire's pale eyes were expressionless as he met Doumeki's gaze squarely. "Your instatement as Keeper is regarded as a rebellion against your mother in some quarters. The move to promote a festival would be seen as a continuation of your defiance towards the crown. I doubt any of the other Keepers would want to be seen as part of that. None of them has taken a stance against the progress Her Majesty promotes."

He paused and smiled slightly. "Well, except for Lord Ishiyama. But he's regarded as set in his ways rather than actively rebelling. It helps that he was close to your mother's father. The old man can practically get away with anything within certain bounds." Alastaire smile faded into thin lines. "You can't though. You're the youngest of the Keepers and it stands against you. As does your reserve. It's seen as resentment. Haruka was a very different Keeper."

Doumeki was silent. He could see how it had looked. He had simply taken up the rote duties of Keeper, unaware of the other side of the role. The other Keepers must have been watching and seen his ignorance as active avoidance, an adherence to his mother's policies rather than his own. He frowned, feeling angry at himself. It was likely part of why Alastaire had been given the cold shoulder by the east and west.

Alastaire had been watching his face and now leaned back slightly, coin flipping in slow deliberate rotations. "It wouldn't go down well with your mother, either. Her Majesty is already aware that you're up to something and has her eyes on the Southern Ward. If you were to make moves towards a festival..." Alastaire shrugged. "I don't think she would take it well."

His eyes narrowed. "It might even cause a split in the current political factions. At the moment, even though you're no longer crown prince, you're seen as distant but aligned with Her Majesty. But if you resurrect the festivals, you'll be firmly aligning yourself with the old ways. It will be a conflict of old and new. You'll find much of your support base removed as most of the nobles support your mother. It will be seen as Keeper against Crown." He studied the tip of his shoes where they rested against the carpet. "Though that will probably gain you followers of your own as well." He paused. "Which might only make the situation worse. The people who support the old traditions aren't exactly reputable. You're going to have a host of policies liabilities attached to you."

"And you?" Doumeki was curious about the stance his cousin was going to take.

Alastaire looked up and raised an eyebrow. "Me? I'm looking for a wife. Filial duty and all that. If I happen to have an inconvenient relative then that's sad for me. No doubt it will scare some of the ladies away and the others will sigh in sympathy. But I'll be seen as showing great fortitude by sticking with you anyway."

Doumeki smiled slightly, regarding Alastaire from the corner of his eye. "'Inconvenient relative.'"

Alastaire sighed. "It's such a shame one can't choose one's relatives. My cousin for example. Not only does he work me to death trolling through the underbelly of the city - which is not proper work for a gentleman of style - he subjects me to his ardent admirers at court who practically pepper me with questions about him. Add to that the fact that I have to act as a go-between between him and his mother - who's beginning to eye me rather evilly recently, I might add - and make sure she doesn't find out about his wildly inappropriate love affair-" He sighed again, looking mournful, pale eyes peering out from under his pale bangs. "I am most cruelly used."

His frown suddenly morphed into a grin. "I suppose there's nothing to be done but start courting the daughters of the Keepers and more of the lords. If they slip a bit of information about their parents' political stances, that would be interesting, wouldn't it?" His eyes slid sideways, pale blue through bars of dark gold, a sly mocking glance. "Of course I'll be expecting sanctuary in return when all the ladies find out that I have no intention of choosing any of them."

Doumeki's mouth twitched. "I'll think about it."

Alastaire grinned and pushed off from the edge of the desk. "Since I'm here, we might as well go through some of these precautions of yours." He stood and waked around the other side of the desk, taking Doumeki's chair. "I'm the guest so I get the chair." His grin widened as his eyes fell on the drawer.

Doumeki ignored the glance, not about to rise to the bait. "Weren't you going to the celebration held by Lord Curtis this evening?"

Alastaire shrugged. "The ladies will be so busy vying with each other in my absence, it will be as distracting as if I was there. Besides," Alastaire grinned. "I'm thinking this might be more interesting."

xXx

1) All wardens go through a training period where they wear green tabs on their uniforms. Alastaire's basically referring to some of the younger wardens.

xXx


	51. Faltering Protections III

ENTWINING FATES:

FALTERING PROTECTIONS

III

Yuuko looked up as the door slid open and lowered the pipe from her mouth. "Kimihiro. It's unusual for you to come without warning." She wasn't dressed for guests. The layered robes she was wearing clung precariously to her shoulders and parted to reveal an alarming amount of leg; a scandalous state of dress.

But Kimihiro was familiar with Yuuko's habits and didn't even blink at the sight. Even though, for a brief insane moment, his mind drew an alarming parallel with the kimono Doumeki had been wearing that morning. He must have been more tired than he thought. Kimihiro brought his mind forcibly back to the situation at hand. "It couldn't wait."

Moro and Maru exchanged glances behind his back and slowly slid the door shut behind him, leaving them alone in the smoke-filled room.

Yuuko stared at him silently for a few moments then slowly sat up, eyes narrowing. "You've come to ask me for something."

Kimihiro straightened, taking a deep breath. "I have a wish."

"You still haven't finished paying for your last wish." Yuuko's eyes slid to the gold dragon perched on Kimihiro's shoulder, unnaturally quiet and still.

"I know." Kimihiro's fists clenched. "But things have changed." He now knew what was within the city. The modest increase of power he had once bargained for was no longer sufficient to protect what was held in his trust. "I suspect that He is in the city."

Yuuko was quiet for a few moments, eyes fixed on the smoke rising from the pipe held loosely in her hand. "How are you feeling, Kimihiro?"

"Feeling?" He was uncertain what she was asking but he knew it wasn't an idle question. Yuuko never did anything without a reason.

Dark red eyes rose to pin him with a direct gaze. "You came to the shop instead of simply contacting me."

Kimihiro blinked. The situation was so serious that he hadn't even thought about it. He'd simply- Kimihiro suddenly realized what Yuuko was saying.

Yuuko was still looking at him, watching as the sudden realization slid across his face. "Only two months ago, coming to visit me cost you far more than it does now. Your power is growing, Kimihiro."

"But-" It was inconceivable. "I thought that-" That the damage which had been done was irreversible, had limited all hopes for him to become as powerful as his parents. Or even powerful enough to function properly as support for the Southern Ward. He was acting in the role only because there wasn't anyone else.

It was as if Yuuko had read his mind. "What He did when you were a child damaged your power so that it could never be used naturally." She sat up and leaned forward, hand reaching towards his right eye. Kimihiro flinched but she had stopped short, fingers several inches away from his face. Her eyes had a dark cast as if she was seeing more than what was before her. "He sought to take your power and consume it. But in the midst of your fear and pain, you divided it and attacked him with the other half. As a result you power remains in two pieces: the half that ceaselessly powers your sight and the other half that remains hidden, reluctantly answering your call."

She slowly sank back on the couch, hand lowering. "The damage you sustained later only made the situation worse. On another path you would have developed to be a formidable practitioner. One that might have rivalled the greatest of your ancestors." Yuuko lifted the pipe to her lips, eyes hooded.

Kimihiro knew that much. Hikideshi and Haruka had said similar things - that the attack had been a desperate act to counter a future threat. It had been cold comfort to be viewed as a potential threat by Them. But it had only highlighted how little a threat he was now.

A thin trail of smoke rose from the end of the Yuuko's pipe. "But your power is like a living thing within you. And like all living things, it struggles for life." Yuuko fixed him with a serious stare. "If one way is closed, it will seek another way to live. It will adapt itself to circumstances."

Kimihiro suddenly recalled all the tasks that Yuuko had set him, all the problems that had come to his door. All the situations which had stretched him to his limits and even sometimes beyond them. They hadn't simply been a matter of balance in debt and payment. The experience had changed him. He'd had to use his limited abilities, to adapt to his short comings and find new ways to deal with problems. He'd had to learn to use what power he had. And as a result he had gained more than he knew, accessing more power than he ever would have otherwise have managed on his own.

And it was certain Yuuko had known exactly what would happened.

"Why has it been happening recently?" Looking back now, Kimihiro could see that there had been a marked improvement in recent months. He should never have been able to face down the spirit in the Canar relic as he had, for example. Or even hold the cursed painting sealed for as long as he had.

Yuuko smiled faintly, an almost gentle look in her eyes. "I suspect you needed the right set of circumstances." She didn't explain that but continued. "Like the uncertainty of one's powers awakening, the revival of one's powers is also a mystery."

Kimihiro thought for a moment. "Will it continue?"

"Even a withered limb can grow stronger when it is exercised correctly." A trickle of smoke escaped Yuuko's lips. "And in some cases it can become stronger than an undamaged limb would have been destined to."

He caught the message of her words. If he continued to push himself, his power should grow accordingly. It wasn't necessary at this point to make a costly wish when he could get the same result from his own efforts. A faint smile curved his mouth. It was advice, backhanded as it was.

"Do you still have a wish?" Yuuko was studying her pipe but Kimihiro knew that she was as aware as him as if she was staring at him.

Kimihiro was silent for a moment. "No." Her eyes lifted and he met her gaze squarely. "I'll save it for another time, when there is no choice. I'm going to see what I can do by myself."

A faint smile creased the deep red lips. "Was there anything else?" Her smile widened. "Problems with some personal matters, perhaps?" She glanced at him, her posture and expression suddenly sly. "I could give you some free advice in that respect."

Kimihiro eyed her narrowly. "Free?" Whenever Yuuko said the word it was cause to be wary. Kimihiro started considering what excuse he could use to make an abrupt departure.

Yuuko rolled over onto her stomach, languidly kicking up one foot as she tapped the pipe on the small side table. "Of course." Her smile was positively gleeful. "Your parents engaged my services so that I could help you with such matters."

Kimihiro had a sinking sensation about where this was going. He remained stubbornly silent, hoping that Yuuko might drop the issue if he didn't give her the opening she was obviously seeking. Yuuko could only intervene if she was given permission. Something he doubted his parents had given in this respect.

But in some things, Yuuko didn't view her actions bound as unwarranted interference.

She pinned him with knowing eyes. "Your approach with his Highness for example-"

So she knew about that, too. Ryuu shifted uneasily on his shoulder and Kimihiro frowned. "I've handled things badly." His actions only seemed worse in retrospect. "I'm resolved to be as honest as I can in the future."

"Hiding the truth never does any good, Kimihiro." Yuuko's grin stretched wider than the news warranted. "So when are you going to confess?" She seemed almost gleeful at the prospect.

Confess? Kimihiro couldn't see anything good coming out of the conversation that he was going to have with Doumeki in the future. Yuuko herself had said that it was best that Doumeki didn't know. He couldn't explain why she'd had such a change of heart now-

It suddenly dawned on Kimihiro that they were talking about very different things.

Kimihiro flushed red, glaring at her once the implications had sunk in. "Not _that_!" Ryuu was shifting uncomfortably on his shoulder, turning its small sinuous body around in nervous twists. "I found out that Haruka hadn't told him he was an exorcist."

Yuuko's face immediately clear of humour. "His Highness didn't take it well." It wasn't a question.

"No." It was said more quietly that Kimihiro's previous outburst.

They were both silent for a moment, smoke coiling up unnoticed from the pipe between them.

"What do you plan to do?" Yuuko finally asked. It was clear from the tone of her voice that she was asking about more than his treatment of the Keeper.

"As I promised." Ryuu was still again, but Kimihiro hardly noticed, going through his decision once more. "But I'll do what I can. Doumeki can't go without training." He paused slightly before quietly admitting. "Hikideshi said that it was only a question of time."

"Hikideshi can usually be trusted on such matters." Yuuko was suddenly all business again, with not a trace of humour. Her dark stare fixed on something across the room for a moment before turning to pin Kimihiro. "Did he say anything about Him?"

Kimihiro flexed a shoulder uncomfortably. "Hikideshi confirmed that there was no mistake - it's most likely that He is inside the city." He swallowed, "But he couldn't say how it was possible."

Yuuko had become still, face grave. "Things are shifting. Not just in your world but several." Her fingers slowly moved along the slender length of the pipe, idly caressing the smooth surface. "There has been deterioration in the fabric of some. It is possible that your world has become affected as well."

Kimihiro's blood ran cold at Yuuko's words. "Affected how?"

Yuuko's eyes were like pools of dried blood. "Protections may have weakened. The wards are old and some are no longer maintained as they once were. For Him to be in the city, there is a high probability that the wards no longer have the same power they once did."

For a moment Kimihiro had a panicked thought that He was not the only one who had entered the city. But the nature of the incidents that Hikideshi had been recording reassured him. With a few exceptions, most of those inside the capital were the result of things that had already been in the city rather than incursions from outside. And even He appeared to be alone - his minions, aside from the crows, had only been seen outside the city walls.

"I'll be securing the Southern Ward tomorrow." And trying to keep his actions as low key as possible.

Yuuko knew what he was thinking. "Supernatural threats are not your only problem." Her eyes had grown dark.

He knew that all too well. "I'm not advertising the fact that I know His Highness."

Yuuko's mischievous smile returned. "It would be wiser to hide your relationship - a lot of ladies at court will get jealous."

Kimihiro remembered the way Doumeki had been staring at him and his own nervous reaction. He flushed, colouring even more when Yuuko started smirking. "There's nothing going on!"

But Yuuko wasn't so easily distracted after that. It took Kimihiro several minutes to convince her that he didn't need one of her 'relationship' books to help 'improve' the situation between him and Doumeki.

xXx

**Kimihiro suddenly found himself awake.**

**The room was dark, only faint light slipping in through the gap around the curtains to provide any light. Still half-asleep, Kimihiro followed the faint lines of light to where they spread across the wall and floor, cutting the darkness of the room into blocks of shadow.**

**The darkness along one of the walls suddenly rippled, a shape half-rising from the shadows, casting a blot over the line of light running across the wall. **

**Kimihiro froze, suddenly wide awake and eyes fixed on something that shouldn't be within the warded bounds of his room. Something the sudden burning pain flaring through his eye told him he knew. It couldn't be-****  
****  
****But the dark bulk, half hidden in the blank absence of light, didn't disappear. Twin gleams of gold opened into malicious yellow slits. Shortly followed by glinting shards of broken glass as a wide mouth curved into a smile. A mocking smile that widened as the shadowy form rose further, more of its bulk cutting across the faint light.**

**Kimihiro reached for the silver pocket watch on the bedside table, eyes still fixed on the horror that had appeared in his bedroom. Head near splitting with the pain cutting through his right eye like a flare of burning ice. **

**The shadow mouth opened wider, revealing more teeth, as the shadowy form slowly unfolded, moving towards the bed. "So you've noticed me at last." The smile widened with a sickeningly wet sound. "I've been waiting for you." The goryo leaned forward, uttering his name in a sinister, caressing whisper. "Kimihiro."**

**Kimihiro's fingers finally found the silver watch and clutched around it convulsively. He could practically smell the foul breath of the creature as it slowly drew closer. The watch was unyielding metal in his grasp. "Ry-'**

**Something else moved within the room. Suddenly there was a flash of silver, cutting the goryo's form in half with a muted slashing noise. The yellow eyes flared open in anger before disappearing in a spray of black liquid.**

Kimihiro bolted upright, gasping for breath and his heart racing in terror. He was aware that the sheets covering him were sweat-soaked even as his head pounded in a full-blown headache. The pain still remained, a twisted fire that thrust through his eye and back into his brain. But even though it flared, disturbing his vision, Kimihiro's eyes were searching for the dark presence that had been in his room as his hand tightened on the watch held in his hand.

There was nothing there.

Nothing except for Hikideshi standing silently, the faint lines of light from the window cutting across his face and casting his eyes in shadow. He bowed as soon as Kimihiro's eyes fell on him. "My lord."

"Hikideshi?" Kimihiro was confused to see the butler in the same place were He had been in the dream.

Hikideshi approached the bed and set down the barely-visible tray he carried on the side table. He picked up the cup off its surface and held it out to Kimihiro.

Still bewildered and unsettled, Kimihiro took the offered cup. Automatically, he lifted it to his lips. There wasn't only the strong taste of tea that filled his mouth - there was a sharp edge of herbs. He lowered the cup and cast a questioning glance at Hikideshi.

Even in the dark Hikideshi sensed his gaze. "It will let you sleep without dreaming."

Without dreaming. Kimihiro downed the rest without further comment and handed back the empty cup. Hikideshi took it and set it down on the tray with a small click that was loud in the dark.

Kimihiro lay back down, already feeling a tide of weariness flood through him. Whatever Hikideshi had used was fast-acting.

Hikideshi pulled the blankets up across Kimihiro's chest, and laid a gentle hand on one shoulder. "Sleep." It was an order but there was a gentle edge to the words. "The wards are secure. I am keeping watch." The hand on his shoulder squeezed in added reassurance.

Kimihiro found himself nodding, already fading out.

Kimihiro watched as Hikideshi crossed the room. Even as his eyes fluttered shut, he saw Hikideshi slip through the door. But not before the butler retrieved the swords propped up against the wall.

xXx

The shadowy image from his dream and the sight of Hikideshi's swords remained with him the next morning. Kimihiro was subdued as he ate breakfast. Thinking over how much had been real and what had simply been born of suppressed fear. That the wards of the mansion still held balanced against the presence of Hikideshi's swords. The presence of Him.

Kimihiro pressed a hand to his right eye. There were stories of goryo who formed connections with victims that had escaped them. Able to torment them even through the most powerful of wards. The stories usually didn't end well.

He didn't finish breakfast.

The state of things was still on his mind as he descended the stairs to the foyer, dressed in a suppressed glitter. Coils of glittering grey mist over still black waters. The statement of his loyalties and the state of matters at present. An outfit that suited his mood this morning.

Viewed in the cold light of the day, the optimism of last night was lacking. Even if his power was slowly growing, it wasn't enough to face Him headlong. Not when his parents, when _Haruka_ had failed.

The thought lingered in his mind. Failure.

He was suddenly angry, overcome with self-disgust. Wasn't that what He wanted? For Kimihiro to know the hopelessness of the situation and what? Give up? Let the protections of the city and the mansion fall undefended?

Let his people, let Doumeki fall into His hands?

The thought infuriated him. Kimihiro grit his teeth. Damn Him. Rage rushed up, obliterating fear. Kimihiro's hands fisted so much that his nails cut deep into his palms. Damn that. His parents hadn't gone down without a fight. Nor had Haruka. He'd be damned if he did.

Yuuko's words were never spoken idly. If she believed that he could do something in his current state then it was true. Even if Kimihiro couldn't face Him directly with what power he had, there were still things that he could do. The gauntlet had been flung down and Kimihiro planned to pick it up and fling it in his opponent's face.

It might be a doomed battle, but that didn't mean he wasn't going to do what he could.

The promise from Syaoran gave him freedom to act. The duty of protecting his people was now shared - and the shoulders that held up the estate's protections were well able to support the burden if his own fell away. The mansion and the estate were protected.

And that only left Doumeki.

There were several things he could do in that regard. He could show Doumeki the points of the wards to be strengthened to hold the Southern Ward. And starting today he would do what he could to help Doumeki to develop his potential. Even the basics would be enough to steer him down the right direction.

Kimihiro made his way across the large black ward set in the floor towards the entrance. Hikideshi stood waiting with his coat and silently held it out to help him into it.

There was only one thing that remained that he couldn't see a way past. The burden of words still unsaid hung over him.

Hikideshi smoothed the coat over his shoulders. "My Lord." The tone of his voice made it evident that he had something to say.

Kimihiro looked up, meeting the solid black glance. Unreadable to anyone else but concerned to him now.

"Your promise was that you wouldn't tell His Grace." Hikideshi's gaze was intent. "But you can't help what he finds out on his own."

Guide Doumeki to somewhere he could get answers by himself. A dangerous slicing of oaths that Hikideshi had tread for all his centuries of existence. Kimihiro was aware of how Hikideshi was tied to the code of his youth. Honesty in all things yet absolute loyalty to one's liege. It made things difficult when he was trying to help someone yet he couldn't talk about his masters' secrets.

But Hikideshi had found a way past all the oaths. A way to get past all the gags that were imposed on him, the conditions of his guardianship of the mansion. For him.

Could he do anything less for Doumeki?

"I'll be late." Kimihiro's eyes lowered, unable to stare into those dark eyes so full of devotion.

"My lord." Hikideshi bowed, but not before Kimihiro saw the faint smile on his lips.

xXx


	52. Faltering Protections IV

ENTWINING FATES:

FALTERING PROTECTIOSN

IV

It was a rare clear day with only the chill in the air and the biting wind to show that it was still winter. They were at Kiyoimizu, the second of the Southern Quarter's two public parks. It was smaller than Highbridge, structured along the more rigid lines of traditional design for recreating nature in a garden. Where Highbridge was of a more free-flowing design - plants growing in seemingly natural state, belying the constant effort that was put in to maintain the park's structure - Kiyoimizu was more obviously controlled. Pines were pruned to create the most interesting shapes and paths wound through the grounds, precisely located to direct the eye to carefully-constructed features.

In a single glance Doumeki recognized the incorporation of the four elements represented in the landscape (1). Small hills, the placement of large rocks in the landscape, the island that sat in the middle of the pond; they represented earth. The pond and the small watercourses that wound through the park represented water. Stone lanterns that were glimpsed among trees and at the water's edge and the brief flare of colourful flowers represented fire. Wind's invisible presence was seen in its movements: the bending of reeds and branches, the scattering of petals and fluttering of the pennants that were half-hidden in the landscape, their bright streamers fluttering in the air. And behind it all was the influence of human hands that had shaped it all.

It was similar to the gardens of the shrines and Doumeki could now see that they, and the parks, were essentially wards. Not the painted lines and carvings in stone that had been made purely from human hands, but wards created by a careful placement of the elements themselves. He was beginning to see the complex web of protections that threaded through the city. And how complex each of them in turn could be.

But it was obvious that Kimihiro could see far more. Almost as soon as the carriage had rolled to a stop, the lord had set off down the stone pathway leading into the park. Kiyoimizu was less frequented than Highbridge and, except for the odd gardener, no one was around to see them as Doumeki accompanied Kimihiro deeper into the garden. Doumeki watched curiously as Kimihiro led the way, an energetically striding figure, tightly swathed in thick coat and scarf, stopping every so often to stare among the vegetation, to lay a pale white hand on a tree trunk or large rock. Testing protections, searching for any damage.

Kimihiro had started talking as soon as they were in the park. "Just as no two people have the same skills, every exorcist has their own unique set of abilities. Your grandfather had a strong blend of sight and a powerfully developed attunement with the second world." Kimihiro cast him a dark glance sideways. "You don't have sight but I suspect that you do have a strong affinity for the second world."

Doumeki didn't know what expression he wore but Kimihiro suddenly stopped and frowned, taking off one of his gloves and stuffing it into his pocket. "Give me your hand."

Doumeki blinked, staring at the pale hand Kimihiro extended. Not quite sure he'd heard that right.

Kimihiro made a small irritated noise and took a hold of Doumeki's wrist, lifting his arm, and proceeded to take off his glove. Doumeki watched in bemusement as Kimihiro pulled at each of the glove's fingers before tugging the glove off his hand. It was clear what Kimihiro wanted now but Doumeki just watched, content to leave Kimihiro at it. He found that he was enjoying Kimihiro taking off some of his clothes, even if it was only a glove.

"Hold this." Once removed, the glove was thrust into his empty hand. Doumeki took it - only to nearly drop it when Kimihiro's bare hand clasped his own.

Kimihiro's rose to meet Doumeki's in a dark blue stare. "Can you feel anything?"

Besides Kimihiro's cool fingers wrapped around his own? Doumeki found himself hard-pressed to think beyond the fact that Kimihiro's hand was holding his. It was almost as large as his, the pale fingers firmly griping his hand. It wasn't so much the feel as the fact that Kimihiro had initiated the touch which had Doumeki off-balance.

"Well?" Kimihiro's irritated enquiry jolted him back to his surroundings.

Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro's face, which was wearing an impatient scowl, before returning his attention to their joined hands. Trying to sense past the feel of cool flesh. After a few moments there was something: a warmth that wasn't anything to do with Kimihiro's cool hand. "There's something. A warmth. Or something like warmth."

Kimihiro frowned. A look of trepidation flashed across his face before settling into a look of determination. He changed his grip on Doumeki's hand and suddenly lifted it to place it palm down over his right eye. "And now?"

Doumeki's couldn't reply straight away. Not even the feel of Kimihiro's nose alongside the side of his hand, the feel of his cheek under his palm really registered. Instead he was focused on the flaring heat under his fingers, emanating from Kimihiro's eye. Like invisible flames that never quite burned.

Kimihiro's uncovered eye was focused on him. A steady dark blue gaze that was almost unnerving from one eye. "You feel it, don't you?" The words were soft, with barely any movement beneath Doumeki's hand to betray that they had been said.

Kimihiro's hand lifted from where it covered Doumeki's, falling back to his side. After a moment Doumeki lifted his hand away, regarding the dark eye it had covered. The flaring heat vanished as soon as he lost contact.

Kimihiro nodded at what he saw in his face. "Your sense of the supernatural world will likely be your strongest ability." He turned away and started walking again, heading down the path.

Doumeki took a grip on his shoulder to stop him and reached out again with his bare hand. This time reaching for Kimihiro's left eye.

It was normal flesh. An irritated flutter of lashes under his fingers.

Doumeki returned his hand to Kimihiro's right eye, ignoring the glare he received, and the burning flare touched his fingers once more. "What is it?" His voice was soft as he said it, distracted by the flickering sensation he was feeling. It wasn't unpleasant. But it didn't feel right, either.

Kimihiro stared at him from one dark eye, irritation fading somewhat at the question. "My sight isn't entirely natural." There was a twitch under Doumeki's fingers, barely perceptible through the burning heat. Kimihiro suddenly slid out from under Doumeki's hand and started down the path once more. Clearly not wanting to talk about it.

But Doumeki wasn't prepared to let it go this time, pacing at Kimihiro's side. "In what way?"

Kimihiro shot him a sharp glance as he walked. He stared down the stone path and for a few moments only the sound of their shoes on the hard, even surface was heard. "It was forced open while a spirit was trying to consume me. A forcible connection between my sight and my power." Kimihiro's voice had a tense note to it and his steps were quick and precise. "What you felt," he made a sharp little gesture to his eye, "is in essence a leaking of power. It gives me a greater ability to sense what is around me but has the drawback of attracting nearly everything in the vicinity."

A leaking wound. Doumeki flexed his fingers, recalling the flaring heat that had risen to meet them. Remembering all the times Kimihiro had pressed a hand to his right eye. It had always been when he had sensed something or used his power.

Kimihiro seemed aware of his thoughts and scowled at him, stopping to lay a hand on a seemingly random pine. "Trees can also be a part of wards." He was continuing his explanation of why they were there, shifting the topic from his eye. "Depending on the species, where they are planted and the age, they can create part of elemental wards. Wards that are made up by an arrangement of physical objects which represent, or _are_ part of the elements themselves. Most manmade wards are supported by elemental ones as well." He tapped his fingers on the trunk. "If you can sense the power running through them, you can determine the strength of the wards. With extra practice you can even tell if something has slipped passed them or whether the wards have been tested." He moved on, walking towards a large boulder.

Doumeki walked with him, taking in the distracted flow of words as Kimihiro explained what he was doing. Watching him as the lord moved onto another part of the garden and pointed out another aspect of the ward. Kimihiro seemed somewhat unnerved by the steady regard but steadfastly ignored it, doggedly continuing the lesson. The lord occasionally took Doumeki's own hand and laid it on something under his own, asking if the Keeper could feel anything.

Aside from the distracting chill of Kimihiro's hand over his own, Doumeki didn't for the most part. But every so often he _would_ feel something. A fleeting warm or chill under his palm that had nothing to do with rough bark or smooth stone. When he admitted as much, Kimihiro would nod, saying that what he was sensing was the spirit inside. It was the skill of an exorcist. Or at least the skills of one who had the potential to become one.

In the wake of revelations made yesterday, Kimihiro seemed determined to make up for withholding information from him in the past. The testing of trees and stones now, was another opportunity. A chance to teach Doumeki more about his skills. Now that he had decided on his course, Kimihiro doing his best to explain things. Pointing out features that Doumeki would never detect on his own.

But when they came to an old pine, it was different. Instinctively Doumeki touched it without any urging from Kimihiro. The sensation was uncomfortable, almost painful. Doumeki couldn't help the involuntary recoil of his hand from the trunk as the feeling erupted from under it.

Kimihiro was at his side instantly, frowning as he laid his own hand next to Doumeki's on the pine's rough trunk. He didn't recoil as Doumeki had done, but pressed his hand firmly against the bark. After a few moments, his pupils suddenly widened, encroaching on his irises until they were a thin rim of blue. Doumeki had seen it often enough to know that Kimihiro was using his sight.

Kimihiro finally slid his hand from the trunk, the blue of his eyes returning as his pupils shrunk. "If things were different, you would have made a good gardener." There was no mockery in his words - Kimihiro was dead serious. "It's suffering from the early stages of root rot. We'll have to inform the gardeners. Catching it this early means that it might be saved." His eyes met Doumeki's for a moment and then he turned back to the path.

Doumeki had stared at the seeming-healthy pine for a few moments before following. Eyeing the other pines they passed. He didn't feel the urge to touch any of them and he could only assume that they were healthy. It was a strange thing, though, that he would be able to sense something wrong.

Except with Kimihiro. Doumeki eyes shifted to the lord. His pace had slowed as he was peering at a moss-covered rock. Doumeki hadn't sensed anything from him before, though there was clearly something wrong with his eye. Even now Doumeki couldn't be sure whether the urge to reach out and touch him was because of his eye or because he simply wanted to feel that heat again.

He watched as Kimihiro frowned and started forward again at a quicker pace. He appeared to be in a hurry today. Kimihiro hadn't stopped moving since he had arrived at the mansion. Doumeki had to wonder what had happened. If it was more than what had happened yesterday.

It wasn't until they reached one of the streams running through the garden that Kimihiro suddenly stopped short. Doumeki was immediately searching for any sign of threat but Kimihiro wasn't looking strained as he did when he had saw something dangerous. While his pupils had widened somewhat, he looked surprised rather than anything else. Before Doumeki could ask what he saw, Kimihiro did something Doumeki had never seen before. He bowed. Very precisely and deeply to the water that was flowing through the pebbled watercourse.

And just as Doumeki was taking in that, the water suddenly moved. In swirls and ripples that nothing to do with the natural flow of the water. As if something was standing in the streambed and moving restlessly about.

"No." Kimihiro straightened. His voice was soft, almost gentle. "He can't come any more."

The water rippled once more, a mournful burble.

Kimihiro's eyes darkened, a slightly pained look crossing his face. He suddenly took a step forward. "But he sent me."

The water swirled with renewed vigour, a few slight splashes rising from the flow.

A surprised expression opened Kimihiro's eyes wide. "I-" He darted an uncertain look to Doumeki, a widened glance of black and blue.

Apparently the spirit was still talking though, for Kimihiro's attention turned back to the water. He was quiet for a long time as the stream gurgled on.

Doumeki watched his face, trying to figure out what was going on. Kimihiro had an intent look on his face as he listened to words Doumeki couldn't hear. The spirit, if that was what it was, must have had a lot to say because several times the lord's mouth opened, only to shut again as the spirit continued.

The spirit must have asked a question, finally, because Kimihiro glanced at Doumeki again, looking somewhat wary. "Yes, he's rather nice-" He broke off again as the stream burbled on.

Doumeki supposed that he had been the subject of conversation. It was somewhat amusing to hear Kimihiro admit that he was 'nice'. Though Doumeki would have preferred a more enthusiastic description.

But apparently they were now talking about something else. Kimihiro face suddenly paled. "No, I didn't know. Would you show me?"

It must have been an affirmative because the disturbance in the stream suddenly moved, heading up against the flow. Kimihiro jolted into action as well, quickly striding up the path alongside the stream.

"Where are we going?" Doumeki kept one eye on the water as he strode at Kimihiro's side.

Kimihiro glanced over at him before turning his attention back to the movement marking the spirit's presence. "The pond. The resident water spirit says that something came and tried to pull down the bridge."

"The bridge?" It was just coming into sight now as the path turned toward the pond. It looked intact from this distance and he hadn't received any reports that it had weakened.

But Kimihiro didn't answer. They had reached the edge of the pond and the spirit's passage was now clearly visible in the deeper water. A small enthusiastic bow wave was surging fast across the wide expanse, heading directly to the stone bridge leading to the small island at the centre of the pond. Kimihiro increased his pace to match and soon they were practically running to keep up with their invisible guide.

Doumeki grabbed one of Kimihiro's arms as the lord made to run out onto the bridge. "Was it damaged?" He wasn't about to let Kimihiro out onto the bridge if it was unsafe.

Kimihiro blinked as if he had forgotten about the water spirit's words. He looked out at the pond, the epicentre of ripples flowing out from a point close to the bridge. "Not enough to make it dangerous."

Doumeki reluctantly let go, following Kimihiro out onto the stone arch. It was solid under their feet and he could see no sign of damage as he walked across it.

Kimihiro walked to one side and stood listening to the water spirit. "The damage is at one of the supporting piers?" There was a slight pause, a ripple of water. The revelation led to Kimihiro leaning over the edge of the bridge to have a look, Doumeki taking hold of him least he disappear over the side and into the pond.

Kimihiro leaned forward and Doumeki took a firm hold on the back of his coat to stop the lord from falling off the bridge and into the pond. He didn't seem to recognize the peril his actions put him in and Doumeki was left to ensure that his distraction didn't lead to a soaking or worse. Even as the thought crossed his mind, Kimihiro leaned further forward and Doumeki tightened his grip. The lord now had most of his body hanging over the side and if it wasn't for Doumeki's hold, Kimihiro would have been in the water already.

"I see it." Kimihiro's voice was soft. "No wonder you didn't like it-" He suddenly stopped talking, apparently listening to something. There was a spray of water under the bridge and Kimihiro suddenly laughed softly, chest moving under the hand Doumeki had clenched in his coat.

It was the first time Doumeki had ever heard Watanuki laugh. It was light and carefree, from a person who was usually neither. Doumeki found himself wanting to hear more of it.

Water rippled under the bridge and Kimihiro's laughter started anew. Not for the first time, Doumeki wondered what Kimihiro was seeing.

xXx

Kimihiro tried to stop laughing, aware that the movement was making him slip further. But the image of what could only be one of His minions, scared away by the splashing of water was irresistible.

The water spirit, delighted, let out its own gurgle of laughter. A chuckling of streams and a child-like giggle all at once. Black hair streamed down over thin shoulders, half-obscuring the pale smiling face. The spirit's eyes were blue, a slate grey-blue that mirrored the surface of the lake on a cloudy day. It stood waist-deep in the water, arms wrapped around its body as it laughed.

It was extremely young as spirits went. Kimihiro had never seen a spirit so young - it was only ten years old at most even though there was an ancient ripple to its youth. It had taken Kimihiro a while to figure out what it was but he had finally realized what was tugging at his senses. The young spirit was a splinter of the original spirit that had lived in the lake. Only serious injury could have done it but the water spirit seemed obvious of any harm that had been done to it in the past. It was like a child - simple and carefree.

It peered at him now from the beneath the perpetually wet hair, a smile transforming its face. "It ran fast, fast, fast! I chased it like this!" The spirit let up a spray of water again, just barely missing Kimihiro. He could easily imagine the spirit splashing one of those foul creatures around the pond and the length of the streams. "And when I couldn't reach it, the soldier chased it!"

"The soldier?" He wasn't quite sure whether it was talking about a living person or something else. Doumeki's grip on his coat shifted and he was aware that the Keeper was listening to the one-sided conversation. Which must have sounded quite mad at this point.

"In the boat!" The spirit was excited. "He sleeps a lot but he's been waking up lots more!" The water around the spirit was getting choppy as it got more excited, moving around in a fidgety dance. "He chopped the creature up with a big sword! Chop! Chop!" It started laughing again, clearly finding the death of the creature funny.

Kimihiro wasn't so amused. Something that could destroy one of His minions wasn't a creature to be messed with. "Is he awake now?"

The spirit stopped laughing and shook its head, letting loose a spray of droplets. "He got tired. He was awake but he got tired." It suddenly brightened, smiling up through the strands of wet hair half concealing its face. "Maybe he'll be awake next time you come!"

Kimihiro felt a pang as the happy eyes stared into his own. It had forgotten about Haruka's failure to return. He wasn't even sure if it understood that the former Keeper was dead. Kimihiro wasn't certain that he would be able to return, either. But the water spirit clearly expected him to come back. "I'll try to come back soon." It was the best he could do. "And I'll stay longer when I do."

The water surged. Before he knew what was happening, watery arms were flung around Kimihiro's shoulders and wet lips were pressed to one cheek in a watery kiss.

But the sudden move must have alarmed Doumeki, because Kimihiro was immediately hauled backwards onto the bridge. He found himself lying on his back with Doumeki leaning over him and staring down with expressionless gold eyes. For an instant Kimihiro was seized by the feeling that the Keeper was going to do something but after a long moment he only leaned back. "You were slipping."

So he hadn't been bothered by the water. Kimihiro felt a surge of irritation that was tempered by the knowledge that Doumeki could have let him fall in if he wanted.

"Thank you." It was somewhat clipped. He was uncomfortable with Doumeki looming over him in the way he was. It reminded him of the incident in the map room- Kimihiro abruptly sat up, pushing Doumeki out of the way, and looked into the pond to see how the water spirit had taken things.

The water spirit wasn't offended by his abrupt departure. It was giggling as it watched them both, something sly and unsettling in its eyes. "Bring the nice man too!"

It took his silence as agreement and dispersed into the pond. A fast-moving vee skidding across the surface, intent on something else had caught its attention.

Kimihiro started to get up, irritated to see that Doumeki had managed it before him. He accepted the offered hand with a little less grace than he would have liked and suffered Doumeki's sharp pull to aid him to his feet. Doumeki still had his hand when he was standing though, staring at their joined hands, face blank. Kimihiro waited for a moment but finally tugged his hand free with a sense of exasperation. Sometimes he wondered whether Doumeki had sustained some sort of head injury when he was a child.

His eyes went to the wooden structure that sat as the focal point of the garden. A wooden pavilion built to look like a boat with benches forming the sides and a slanting roof which made the enclosed area resemble a cabin (2). He frowned and crossed the bridge to follow the pale stepping stones that led into the structure. Doumeki trailed after him, glancing curiously back at the movement in the water that marked the water spirit's erratic course across the pond.

Kimihiro cautiously stepped inside the open structure, looking up at the construction of the roof, the large crossbeams that held it up. It was made in much the same way the older shrines were, albeit on a smaller scale. There were no ward lines but the wooden beams were solid, unyielding. "The soldier in the boat. Does it mean anything to you?"

"Sukuza Doumeki." Doumeki was staring down at the pavement beneath their feet. "He was the first Keeper of the Southern Ward and buried at Kiyoimizu after his death. It was said he had enjoyed boating in his later years and left orders for this pavilion erected over his grave." Gold eyes rose to meet his. "What did the water spirit tell you?"

Kimihiro frowned as he tried to get a sense of the spirit connected to the grave they stood on. "That whatever came to damage the bridge was destroyed by the soldier in the boat." He stared down at the pavement beneath their feet. "It could only mean your ancestor has been tied to the area. And that he's woken up recently." He glanced up at Doumeki. "Can you feel anything?"

Doumeki was still for a moment, eyes half-closed. "No."

Kimihiro took one of his hands and laid it against one of the poles supporting the roof. "And now?"

Doumeki looked faintly surprised, his eyes widening so that white showed around the circumference of his pale irises. "I'm not sure." A slightly perplexed expression crossed his face.

After several long minutes Kimihiro let go of Doumeki's hand. "Blood is the strongest tie. If you don't feel anything then I doubt he's going to appear." After one last glance at the structure, he slowly left the pavilion.

Doumeki hesitated a moment, then slid his hand from the pole, slowly following. "Blood?"

Kimihiro cast a glance back over his shoulder as he set foot on the bridge. "Lineage is a bond that lasts beyond death. A monoke can possess one their descendants or a practitioner may borrow the power of one's ancestors." He was sure that Doumeki knew this already. Kimihiro frowned. "Most common is that ghost of relations will appear when one of their line is nearby. It makes connection with this world easier."

Doumeki frowned but didn't say anything.

They were halfway back around the pond when a sudden feeling, almost a sharp tug, made Kimihiro turn to look back at the island.

A shadowy figure was standing at the entrance of the boat pavilion. Kimihiro couldn't make out any features but even from this distance, the elaborate burial robes the person wore were clearly of an ancient style. And the sword that was lifted in salute was unmistakable. The water spirit and the garden would be protected.

Doumeki had followed his gaze back to the island and now looked at him in silent question.

"I don't think you have to worry about the garden." Kimihiro smiled faintly. "Suzuka will look after it for you."

xXx

1) There are five elements that are traditionally represented in Japanese gardens: earth, water, fire, wind and sky. I've done away with sky and inserted the shadow element of man to fit in with the cosmos-view that I've created for this AU. In other words, the usual XD

2) Inspired by the Funanoochin Arbour in Kenrouken Garden, Kanazawa. laugh If anyone's interested.

xXx

Ahahaha. All sorts of things are starting to wake up XD And dear Suzuka. The man who started the trend of girly names for the Doumeki men. grin He wasn't girly in the least but none of his descendents have been either. So it must have worked XD

xXx


	53. Faltering Protections V

ENTWINING FATES:

FALTERING PROTECTIONS

V

As the ornate carriage slowed, Doumeki looked out the window. They were only just within the city walls but the cobbled streets were nearly as congested as the inner ring. Shop fronts and houses lined the streets, with people walking briskly, a constant stream flowing in and out of establishments. The streets were filled with the clamour accompanying the lines of carriages and wagons traversing the road. Yet among it all, nearly invisible against the modern setting, lay a narrow avenue marked with a distinctive red gate.

"A shrine?" He glanced over at Kimihiro, hoping now they had arrived he might hear the reason for their visit.

Kimihiro flicked him a tense glance. The lord had been unnaturally quiet during the ride into the city, sitting with hands folded tensely in his lap as he stared sombrely out the window. At first Doumeki had thought it was the prospect of being within the city with the threat that stalked through it. But he had soon realized that it was their destination that was worrying Kimihiro.

Now Kimihiro was distracted, giving Doumeki a grim look. "We're here to see the head priest." Kimihiro's voice was as tense as his glance had been. Before Doumeki could say anything more, Kimihiro's footman was standing at the side of the carriage and opening the door.

Grasping his cane tightly in once hand, Kimihiro stood and stepped out of the cabin, leaving Doumeki no choice but to do the same. After Doumeki had exited, Kimihiro gave a quick nod to the footman who immediately shut the door and moved to the front of the carriage, swinging up to sit on the perch next to the driver. Kimihiro was already starting up the avenue leading to the shrine. Doumeki glanced back to see the carriage pull out into the flow of traffic once more, then turned his attention back to the sacred walkway Kimihiro was already walking.

It was a plain, stone-paved avenue boxed in by private boundary lines to either side. The path stretched nearly ten meters before stone lanterns began to appear on either side, creating an imposing corridor that ended in a natural gateway formed by two ancient pines. At the end of the avenue stood the Komainu, the two stone dogs that stood guardian over the shrine precincts; one with its mouth open and the other closed.

Kimihiro had paused several feet ahead of him and was waiting impatiently, cane clutched in one gloved hand. As Doumeki caught up with him, the lord opened his mouth as if to say something but closed it again, compressing his lips into a thin line. Doumeki eyed him curiously as Kimihiro strode briskly along the path. Aside from a fleeting blue glance, however, Kimihiro ignored the Keeper's questioning stare.

It took only a few moments to walk the sacred way and by the time they reached the pines, the priest of the shrine was there to greet them. Kimihiro glanced at the Komainu briefly before walking between them to greet the priest.

"Lord Watanuki." The bald, middle-aged man waiting for them was dressed in the full regalia of head priest. He bowed as he set eyes on Kimihiro. "It has been too long since we last saw you." His dark brown eyes shifted to Doumeki and he made a second bow, as deep as the first. "Your Grace. I am Carrington, head priest of Suizara. You honour us with your visit. Your predecessor often came to the shrine."

Doumeki gave him a sharp glance at that comment but the priest had already turned back to Kimihiro. "Lord Watanuki, if you would follow me?" After a silent nod, the priest started off, moving further into the shrine precincts.

"I have already done as you requested, Lord Watanuki. The boundary markers and the lines of the shrine have been checked." He sent a calm, reassuring look to Kimihiro. "They are all in perfect order."

They walked past the chozeiya (1) as they headed towards the shrine's main hall. The bamboo ladles rested upside-down, patiently waiting for parishioners to use. Doumeki glanced over the grounds. Except for a couple of people standing in front of the suzu, pulling the thick braided cord before saying their prayers, the grounds were empty.

The priest noticed the Keeper's attention on the worshippers and smiled. "We have a steady stream of parishioners coming during the day. Not as many as the cardinal Wards but enough that our presence is not obsolete." He gazed out at the suzu and smiled. "Lunch and the end of the day are the busiest periods. People often drop in when they have free time or at the end of their day. We also get a steady stream of people visiting when they enter the city, especially on market days." He turned down a path leading to the gateway that led beyond the honden, the main sanctuary.

Doumeki followed him thoughtfully. Away from the centre of the capital, the shrines, the minor wards spread through the city still survived. But a glance at the faded paintwork of the structures they passed showed that it was a fragile existence. Most had lost their noble patrons and were reliant on the donations of their parishioners.

They passed through the gateway to the sacred garden of the shrine. A simple landscape met the eye: moss covered ground and old trees - ancient pines, weeping cherries and thick groves of maples. The pines were the only colour, dark green where the cherries were skeletal branches and the maples only retained a skirt of brown leaves. A line of stepping stones trailed off further into the wooded area, a pale grey against the bright green moss. A sekimori-ishi, a small round stone bound with straw rope in the shape of a cross, lay in the centre of the closest stepping stone (2). A silent admonition that indicated that the area beyond was out of bounds.

Carrington stopped short and made a small gesture towards the path that trailed out of sight. "I will wait here with His Grace if you wish."

Kimihiro nodded, eyes moving briefly towards the priest before swinging back to the path. "My thanks." He turned to Doumeki. For a moment it seemed like he was going to say something but he simply settled on a nod. "I won't be long." He stepped onto the trail, neatly stepping over the blocked step. Within moments he had disappeared from sight, concealed behind a wall of pines.

Carrington watched him go. "I'm pleased to see His Lordship with you, Your Grace." His voice had softened, losing its brisk cheerfulness for a quieter, contemplative edge. "After your predecessor's death, I feared we would not see him again."

Doumeki's eyes slid sideways to regard the other man.

Carrington turned to meet the gaze headlong. "He hasn't told you?" He sounded surprised. The priest's eyes lowered. "No doubt His Lordship has his reasons then."

It was clear that the priest wasn't going to say anything more on the subject but he had already mentioned that Haruka visited the shrine. "You said that my grandfather often came here."

The priest had turned to watch the pathway but now his gaze returned to Doumeki. "Whenever he could." The smile was back, shaded with genuine warmth. "A least once every few weeks." His hands were laced loosely in front of him in a relaxed gesture. "Lord Watanuki and His Grace would often meet here."

He glanced at the path Kimihiro had walked then hesitated. "Lord Watanuki could be a while. Perhaps we should find a seat?"

Doumeki nodded and followed the priest further onto the shrine grounds. It finally looked like he was going to get some information about the relationship between Kimihiro and Haruka.

xXx

Kimihiro followed the last of the steps with wary caution. The focus of Suizara was a small island situated in the midst of a pond. The only access was a series of stepping stones that ran through the water, each step a small island in the still waters. For a malevolent spirit such a crossing would have been impossible but Kimihiro managed it with no trouble at all. After a brief hesitation he stepped out onto the first, slowly crossing the pond to the point that it protected.

Once he reached firm ground, Kimihiro surveyed his surroundings. The island was bare except for grass, moss and a large boulder in the centre, a liquid shine reflecting light from its surface. The rock was said to have been on the grounds before the shrine had been built. The passage of time had carved a deep bowl onto its surface, creating a vessel where water collected. It had been discovered with a fish living in it, thus giving the shrine its name.

Kimihiro closed his eyes and let all the barriers he had erected fall. The point immediately blazed to life, unchecked and undimmed. Kimihiro let out an involuntary sigh of relief. He had thought that since the parks had been attacked, the network of the shrines must have also been damaged. But it still held. Suizara was one of the anchors in the network and it was undimmed. It meant that the Southern Quarter still retained most of its protections.

But that begged the question of what He was up to. He had already tried to break the point represented in Highbridge and Kiyoimizu, but he had left the small shrines alone. It was true that, with the parks gone, they wouldn't be able to serve as adequate support in the case of an attack on a cardinal Ward but it was a mystery why he hadn't gone for the softer targets. It was far easier to break a shrine than a park. It was almost as if something else had caught His attention and he had abandoned one play for another.

It was useless to attempt to grasp a goryo's reasoning. While He had been human once, He had become so twisted that normal reasoning no longer applied. If it provided pleasure or some gain in the game He envisioned, then that was enough.

Kimihiro lifted a hand to his right eye. He frowned, recalling Yuko's words, hand slowly lowering. Kimihiro withdrew the silver pocket watch from his jacket pocket and regarded the gold dragon on its surface for a few moments. "Ryuu."

Almost immediately the golden form writhed and began pulling itself up from the watch's surface. The pull was different now that he was concentrating on the sensation. Accessing his power was usually a struggle, like pulling barbed wire through flesh. It was still painful but not as much as it had been. No longer like channelling a flood into a pinprick - it was as if the hole had widened slightly.

The golden dragon was watching him from his hand, small front legs set on the watch and the rest of its body on his palm, the small tail wrapping around his thumb. The construct seemed to know he had called it for a different purpose than usual. It simply stayed still, watching with small dark eyes to see what he would do next.

Kimihiro increased the flow slightly.

Ryuu grew with the influx of power, swelling from finger-sized to larger than Kimihiro's hand. The dragon was half on his palm, half on his arm and the tail that had wrapped his thumb now wound round his hand.

Kimihiro held still for a moment, testing the flow that fed the construct, and then lowered the dragon towards the ground. Ryuu regarded him curiously for a few moments then jumped down, venturing through the long grass down to towards the pond.

Kimihiro sat down on the grass, watching as the construct explored the island. Feeling the constant pull as he fed its existence. It was slightly uncomfortable but it wasn't enough to drain him. Even the ache of his eye was bearable. He began to wonder just how long he could sustain Ryuu's presence. And whether he could prolong the time with practise.

If there was something Kimihiro had learned about his reluctant power, it was that he had to use it in degrees. He wanted to be able to access his power more easily not to rip through the wall that separated it and let it all come streaming out in a fiery tide. That only lead to extended recuperation and he couldn't risk that anymore.

Kimihiro watched Ryuu as the dragon peered into the pond, staring at it own reflections, a distorted ripple of gold. For now he would see how long he could keep the construct at its current size without tiring. At the very least he would try to hold it long enough so that Doumeki would be able to get the information he needed out of Carrington. If he knew Doumeki, it probably wouldn't be very long.

xXx

"-It wasn't wise for His lordship to be seen at the Southern Ward so often. Her Majesty's push for modernisation had placed the Southern Ward on precarious political footing." Carrington was solemn, the cheerful smile gone in favour of a reflective expression. "So they often met here, at the boundary of the city."

They were both sitting on a bench situated further into the shrine garden. It was slightly removed from the path Kimihiro had taken but provided a clear view of the series of stepping stones. Carrington had been obligingly open about Haruka's dealings with the shrine in the past. He seemed to have no problem talking about the relationship Kimihiro had with his grandfather.

It had become clear that Kimihiro had known Haruka very well.

Doumeki was feeling a mixture of emotions at the thought. The creeping rise of anger had increased as the priest revealed that Kimihiro and Haruka had been in continuous contact. Kimihiro hadn't even hinted that he was that close to his grandfather. Regular meetings and occasional visits to the Southern Ward were two different things. It was an eerie mirror of his own visits, though Haruka had never gone to the mansion. A slight distinction but one he caught hold of. He didn't like to think that Kimihiro had taken up a connection with him that looked like a continuation of the one he'd had with Haruka. "They were close."

Carrington smiled slightly, seemingly unaware of the emotions roiling under Doumeki's expressionless exterior. "Not all secondary lines are as involved in the matters that occur in their Quarter. The Watanuki line is the exception. Members of the Watanuki line have always kept a close eye on the Wards of the city and the Southern Ward in particular. The same can be said of Lord Watanuki. He worked closely with your grandfather."

Carrington paused. "They were very close in some ways." He glanced out at the garden. "It may have been an alliance of duty but it turned into something more. A true friendship sprung up between them. They genuinely liked each other's company. Even then there were few people to whom they could talk openly about the supernatural world." Carrington's eyes narrowed slightly. "It was a bad time for both of them and they each were support for the other. I doubt there was anyone else who could understand what they were facing."

Doumeki stared down at his lap. One of his hands clenched tightly in a fist even as the other wrapped around it. To hide it or restrain himself, he didn't know.

He didn't know who he was most angry at. He was angry at Haruka for having such a close connection with Kimihiro. It wasn't just jealously but the feeling that the older man had in some sense gone behind his back; it was the sliver of hurt that he had been replaced. While his grandfather had been seeing Kimihiro he had been left with his mother, cut off and with no one to turn to. He was beginning to see the reasons why but he couldn't help the feelings of abandonment and betrayal that still lingered.

His anger wasn't only directed towards Haruka. There was the resentment he was struggling not to feel against Kimihiro. He was glad his grandfather had been there for Kimihiro as he hadn't for him. Even as part of him was envious of Kimihiro for having spent so much time with Haruka when he had only gotten a few years. He loved them both and to see that they had been through so much together without him – a small voice within him was crying out that everything would have been different if he had been with them. If he had still been able to see his grandfather. If he had met Kimihiro earlier.

And that led to anger at himself. There was no point thinking about the past in terms of what might have been. It was useless and wasn't going to help with the current situation. His grandfather was dead and Kimihiro was threatened at every turn.

"The Southern Quarter was one of the strongest Quarters under their guardianship." Carrington continued. "Lord Watanuki would often go to places where His Grace was not welcome. It was a solid partnership while it lasted - despite his limitations, Lord Watanuki was able to compliment your predecessor very well." His smile returned. "And from the look of things, you will be able to do the same. Your skills are well-matched." He nodded approvingly. "The Doumeki and Watanuki lines have always worked well together."

His smile softened slightly as he stared at the Keeper. "But more than that, I expect this will be good for you both. You'll both need each other. The Watanuki strengths are wards and protection but Kimihiro also has the connections and knowledge you will need." Carrington paused, casting the prince a solemn glance. "But he is vulnerable; your innate warding abilities protect him even as he protects you."

He saw Doumeki's surprise. "Exorcists are rare. Even more so as inhabitants of the second world seek to neutralize them as threats. As Keeper you will need to realize your full potential. You are needed, especially in times like these. You are overseer of the Ward and will need all the reserves you have to fight the coming danger. Lord Watanuki will be able to help you."

Doumeki was silent for a moment. "You know what I am."

The priest smiled. "I have only a minor ability. But even so, I can recognize things for what they are."

It didn't seem so minor when even Kimihiro hadn't been sure.

Doumeki eyed the empty pathway narrowly. It was obvious that Kimihiro was well-acquainted with the Kannushi (3) of Suizara and must have been familiar with the man's open, talkative nature. With Doumeki's own queries about Haruka and Carrington's mention of his visits to the shrine, it was inevitable that Doumeki would have asked for more information. Especially when Kimihiro was conveniently elsewhere.

Kimihiro was aware of this but had brought Doumeki to the shrine anyway. And had made no move to caution the priest against saying anything, even when it was clear Carrington would have stayed silent for Kimihiro's sake.

Doumeki's eyes narrowed further. Kimihiro had said that they were there to see the priest rather than the shrine. It was possible that part of the reason for coming here was to give Doumeki the chance to find the information he sought. The only question was why Kimihiro had gone to such lengths when he could have simply told Doumeki himself.

He became aware that Carrington was watching him, a slight smile on his face. "Lord Watanuki does what he can."

Before Doumeki could ask what he meant, the priest was suddenly standing. "Lord Watanuki! I trust everything was in order?"

Kimihiro was walking back along the trail of stepping stones, returning from his venture to the shrine's heart. He looked more relaxed that he had when he had first entered the shrine grounds, as if he had found what he was looking for. He nodded as he drew closer, casting a quick look at Doumeki before replying. "It holds as strongly as it ever has."

Carrington nodded "I'm relieved to hear it. There will be a meeting of the shrine heads later in the week." He cast a glance at Doumeki. "Perhaps you would like to come, Your Grace." Carrington had his pleasant smile in place. "I am certain that the others are eager to talk to you. About the edicts you issued to the wardens if nothing else."

Doumeki paused. For all his smiles, Carrington seemed to see the situation clearly enough. It was the exact sort of opportunity Alastaire had been talking about. "I'll be there." Riku could shift whatever appointments he had so that he could attend.

Carrington beamed and turned to Kimihiro. "Lord Watanuki, you are also welcome."

Kimihiro looked slightly surprised. "Are you sure?" He sounded somewhat doubtful.

"Of course!" Carrington smiled. "Yoshirou has been talking about some problems in his parish. It sounds like a displeased field spirit but I'm sure he'd like to get your view on the situation. There are also some new faces among the shrines - I'm sure they'd like to meet you both."

Kimihiro looked at Doumeki, trying to read his expression. "Alright." He sounded a little taken aback at the sudden invitation.

Carrignton broke into a wide smile. "I'll expect you both later in the week, then." He paused as if something had suddenly occurred to him. "Lord Watanuki, Your Grace. Do you have any pressing engagements?" Carrington was peering at them in cheerful enquiry.

"I don't have anything planned-" Kimihiro glanced over at Doumeki uncertainly.

Carrington smiled. "Excellent! And Your Grace?"

"No." He wondered what the priest was up to.

The man smiled as if he had heard his thoughts. "I thought you might want to enjoy lunch with me. I wasn't certain that there would be time but since you have no objections, I'll arrange for the gazebo to be set up. It will only take a few minutes." And before either of them could protest, the priest set off towards the household located further back in the garden.

Doumeki watched his departure narrowly. The man had just managed to neatly manoeuvre the both of them. Not that Doumeki was complaining - he had let it happen. He was curious to see what the priest intended. Despite all his smiles, there was calculation hidden under the cheerful exterior.

Kimihiro sat down on the bench next to him, taking the priest's vacated spot. "I'd forgotten this side of Carrington." There was a thread of amusement in his voice. Kimihiro seemed in better spirits than he'd been all day.

But Doumeki wasn't going to be seduced by the lure of Kimihiro's good humour. He wanted answers for Kimihiro's actions today. "You met here with my grandfather."

Kimihiro's faint smile immediately faded. "Yes." His voice was quiet.

"Is there a reason why you didn't tell me?" Doumeki's voice was even.

For a few moments there was silence as Kimihiro fidgeted, fingers nervously twining in his lap, and Doumeki waited.

"I can't tell you everything yet." Kimihiro voice was quiet and he didn't look up. "But I've told you everything I can."

Doumeki considered his words for a few moments. He had known that Kimihiro was keeping things from him but it was another thing to be told. "Can't?"

Kimihiro finally glanced up and nodded. "Can't."

"But you'll tell me later?"

Kimihiro's eyes darkened. "If you still want to hear it." It sounded somewhat ominous but Doumeki wasn't concerned. He doubted that Kimihiro's secrets were as disastrous as he hinted. If he kept quiet about something it was likely because he had no other choice.

Doumeki found his mood lightening. Even if he couldn't tell him everything, it was clear that Kimihiro was trying to give him all the information that he could. And that he was prepared to go to elaborate measures to help Doumeki get answers to his questions. It was a sign that Kimihiro really did view him as more than someone he was tied to by duty alone.

A small smile curved his lips as a thought occurred to him. Maybe he could get Carrington to talk about Kimihiro when he was younger.

xXx

1) A small pavilion near the main hall with water and ladles. Upon entering the main hall of a Shinto shrine, a worshiper will wash their hands and rinse out their mouth.

2) Exactly what I've said. Sekimori-ishi are often placed in traditional Japanese gardens to indicate where guests shouldn't venture.

3) Basically the title of head-priest in Shinto religion. I just like the sound of it XD

xXx


	54. Faltering Protections VI

ENTWINING FATES:

FALTERING PROTECTIONS

VI

Doumeki reached for a biscuit (1) almost as soon as they were set on the table. Kimihiro watched the move with amusement as he accepted a cup of tea from Hikideshi. No matter what happened, at least Doumeki's appetite remained the same. It was a good thing that he had told Hikideshi to prepare something in anticipation that Doumeki might stay.

He usually did when visiting close to a meal time. Not that afternoon tea was really a meal…

"Now you know what to look for, you should be able to sense things more clearly in the future. Once you start focusing on the supernatural world, it becomes easier to determine the characteristics of what you are sensing." Kimihiro was aware that Hikideshi was listening intently and hoped that it was a sign that the butler that might decide to become involved. He could only teach Doumeki so much - the Keeper really had to have an exorcist overseeing his training if he was to reach his full potential.

Hikideshi caught his gaze. A slight smile creased his lips as he poured a second cup of tea for Doumeki.

Kimihiro looked away, suspecting that his hopes had been transparent. "Meditation will help, especially if you are in the inner shrine of the Ward." He was aware that Doumeki practiced mediation as part of his duties as Keeper, but with a new focus it would be more effective. "You should become aware of the strength of the Ward and whether there have been any changes in its protections. Eventually you may even be able to sense if there is something wrong with the shrines that are connected to it." He lifted his cup, "Separating threats from simple disturbances and the passage of benevolent entities."

"Separate how?" Doumeki had been chewing on the biscuit he had claimed. Kimihiro was glad to see that he swallowed before voicing his question.

Kimihiro frowned, attempting to put sensations into words. "Everybody feels things in different way, usually shaped by their past experiences." The handle of the cup was cool beneath his fingers, contrasting with the heat emanating from its contents. "What I might associate with neutrality, for example, might be what someone else views as danger. The dangers for each person are different and the categorizations are different as well. You will need to build up your own set of references."

Doumeki frowned, thinking over his words.

Hikideshi made a small movement that had Kimihiro's attention turning towards him. The butler gave a small bow as the lord's eyes fell on him. "I've taken the liberty of setting out a few objects for His Grace to look at." His words were directed at Kimihiro but his eyes were on Doumeki as he spoke. "It may help him understand the difference between certain influences."

Kimihiro didn't like the sound of that. There were numerous items that had been confiscated over the years and not many of them were safe. "A few items?" He lowered his cup and gave the butler a wary look.

Hikideshi nodded, still watching Doumeki. "His Grace has shown that he can sense the second world." The tone of his voice was bland. "But His Grace might like to test his new skills." His voice was soft, each of the words uttered carefully.

It made Kimihiro's eyes narrow. Familiar as he was with Hikideshi's manner, he knew the butler was issuing a challenge. When Hikideshi's choice of words became precise, it was time to pay attention to what he was saying. To do otherwise, usually led to a situation where someone would regret it.

Doumeki had sensed that something was going on. He had a thoughtful almost blank look on his face but his eyes had narrowed slightly

Kimihiro looked from Doumeki to Hikideshi. "I don't suppose it can wait." He set down his cup with a sigh and stood up. "Where are they?" He _had_ been hoping that Hikideshi would show an interest. He just hadn't expected it to happen so quickly. From the sound of things, Hikideshi had decided on his course before his lord's suggestion.

"In the dining room." Hikideshi gave Kimihiro a slight smile. "It seemed most appropriate."

Appropriate. Kimihiro felt his face go blank. He glanced over at Doumeki. "Are you coming?"

Doumeki met his gaze, studying his face for a moment. He reached out to pick up a biscuit as he slowly got to his feet. Still eating the previous one he held in his other hand.

"I'll take that as a yes." With a last glance at his cup of tea, Kimihiro started towards the door after Hikideshi. Doumeki followed close behind, a loud crunch marking his location. He must have been hungry. Kimihiro wasn't too surprised after all that had happened. Using new skills always required energy and Doumeki had a vast appetite under normal conditions. Lunch at the shrine likely hadn't been enough.

As the loud munching trailed him out into the corridor, Kimihiro reflected that the following few minutes were going to be instructive. Hikideshi had apparently taken an interest in Doumeki's training. And as Kimihiro could attest, the butler's approaches were unusual to say the least.

xXx

Doumeki thoughtfully chewed on the biscuit he carried while he walked with Kimihiro to the dining room. Aside from an exasperated glance every so often when he munched too loudly, Kimihiro was more relaxed than he had been for a while. Doumeki thought that he had even enjoyed himself today. Whether it had been the change in surroundings or Carrington's company, the lord had smiled more than usual over the course of lunch. Doumeki had even been on the receiving end of some of them.

Kimihiro happened to glance over and caught his gaze. His eyes fell to the half-eaten biscuit Doumeki held and his mouth twitched.

Doumeki found himself smiling in return.

Kimihiro's eyes widened slightly and he abruptly turned his head away.

Smile still in place, Doumeki popped the rest of the last biscuit in his mouth and amused himself by watching Kimihiro steadfastly try to ignore him.

After passing through the foyer, they soon reached their destination. Hikideshi opened the door to the dining room and Kimihiro led the way inside. Doumeki glanced at the portraits on the wall, the calm blue eyes of Kimihiro's mother meeting his own for a brief moment, before turning to the huge dining room table that dominated the room.

Three objects had been set its surface. The first was a hairbrush, an elongated utensil with a silver handle and pale bristles. A delicate plate, decorated with a fine tracery of rose buds and thorny vines running along its rim, sat next to it. The last item was a small silver canister used for spices that would have looked at home in any kitchen for a noble household. All three had been placed within the black ward emblazoned on the white table cloth beneath them.

Hikideshi was standing to one side of the table. "Each of these items has come in contact with different supernatural influences. A different influence for each object - at least one of them with the intent for harm." The butler's dark eyes were watchful. "Kimihiro will have taught you enough to sense them." His voice took on a sharp edge. "Use what you have learned to determine what is what."

Kimihiro. This was not the butler speaking, the servant to his lord. It was a man used to being obeyed.

Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro to find his face had gone completely blank. The exasperation and slight amusement wiped away before an emotionless white mask. Even his eyes were guarded - Doumeki couldn't guess what he was thinking.

Kimihiro met his gaze evenly. "Try it without touching any of them first." A flick of his dark blue eyes indicated the table. He wasn't going to prevent the test but he wasn't going to help Doumeki, either.

Doumeki eyed the three objects: brush, plate and spice canister. None of them looked sinister at first glance. They seemed to be ordinary objects. He wouldn't have questioned that assessment once but he did now. Doumeki took a few steps closer to the table to get a better look at the objects Hikideshi had laid out.

The silver handle of the brush was highly polished with prolonged use but the bristles were undamaged, suggesting that its owner had been careful with their belongings. There was a raised relief of stylized plum blossoms running along the handle. It was possible that it had belonged to a man - Doumeki was open minded about the choices that people made for themselves - but it must have originally been made for a woman.

Doumeki didn't sense any harm from it. At first he didn't sense anything at all. But as he stared at it, Doumeki slowly realized that he _was_ feeling something. A soft, barely-perceptible warmth; calm and gentle with a core of strength. For some reason it reminded him of the feeling radiating from Kimihiro's eye, even though the sensations were nothing alike. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't work out why.

He finally turned his attention to the plate. In contrast to the brush, there were no signs of use - it looked like it hadn't been touched since the day it had been fired. The decoration was hand-painted, suggesting it was an expensive piece, but from all appearances it looked like it had been kept in storage for years. Unlike the brush, Doumeki could feel something from it straight away. It was an unsettling, incomplete sensation and there was something almost like an echo. An echo that reminded him strangely enough of the grave of Suzuka. It wasn't the same but it had a similar quality.

With a frown, Doumeki's gaze fell on the spice canister. The more he looked at it, the more wary he became. There was something wrong, a distinct feeling of danger he got when he saw it. Kimihiro had said he would be able to determine the difference between the types of things associated with the second world. He couldn't explain it, but Doumeki knew that this was the piece that had intent to harm.

"What do you think?" Kimihiro had come up behind him. Doumeki had been so intent on the objects in front of him that he hadn't even noticed him move.

Doumeki moved slightly so that he stood between Kimihiro and the canister that sat on the table. For some reason he was uneasy about letting Kimihiro get too close to it. "There's no harm from the brush." He glanced at Kimihiro. "It reminds me of you for some reason." He paused. "It doesn't feel like you, though."

Kimihiro's eyes widened briefly in a startled dark blue stare.

"The plate-" Doumeki hesitated for a moment. "It feels like a grave. An incomplete grave."

Hikideshi had been staring at him impassively, giving no clue as to whether he was correct. "And the last?"

"It's dangerous." He was certain of that.

Hikideshi's eyes narrowed and then he nodded. "The brush belonged to the Lady Watanuki, His lordship's mother."

Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro who gave him a faint smile.

"She was a powerful practioner in her own right and the things she loved most still retain the feel of her presence." Hikideshi gave a thin smile. "Except for her son. His lordship has his own unique presence."

Doumeki was amused to see that Kimihiro was embarrassed by that for some reason. He wouldn't meet either of their eyes.

Doumeki glanced up at the painting on the wall where Kimihiro's mother stared out at them. Having felt what he had from the brush, he was beginning to see what she would have been like. A very different woman from his own mother.

"As for the plate-" Hikideshi continued, drawing Doumeki's attention back to the table. "You are very close to its true nature." Hikideshi picked up the piece, holding it up so that the light from the windows lit the plate's surface, giving it a translucent glow. His other hand moved behind it, and Doumeki could see the outline of his fingers through the thin plate. "It's bone china." Hikideshi lowered the plate once more, setting it back on the table. "Except the bone ash used for this piece belonged to a person rather than an ox."

Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro who wasn't looking shocked or repulsed as one might have expected. "It was made by Gozen." That made the plate nearly three hundred years old. "He had a daughter who served as a priestess at Kogan shrine. Yuuka was said to have been exceedingly gifted when it came to the creation of wards. After she died in an accident, her father made a service out of her cremated remains and presented it to Lord Parnell. The priestess had chosen to remain as a protection of the city." Kimihiro glanced at the lone plate on the table. "But the service was divided nearly a hundred years ago. We have most of the pieces but there are still a few we haven't managed to locate yet."

One of them had been at Lady Fukao's auction, Doumeki suddenly remembered. A small saucer that had sold for a very small sum. 'Lady Minami' had little competition in that bid.

"And the canister?" Doumeki was still aware of it, sitting on the table like a waiting weapon.

Hikideshi picked up the canister, taking a careful but secure hold on the piece. Almost immediately the sense of danger ceased. "Not even the most powerful of wards can stop everything. This was the instrument used to cause the death of nearly an entire household. The assistant cook was subject to the influence of a minor monoke." Hikideshi studied the canister with a curious look that was a mixture of regret and anger. "It wasn't until the servants started dying that truth became apparent. It was only chance the true target was not in residence."

His eyes fixed on Doumeki. "It is a subtle work, hard to adequately read. It's curious that you were able to sense its malice." He still held the canister, fingers still on its surface. "I'd say that it will be your strength. You should practise on everything you some into contact with. Especially if you suspect the providence of an object." His eyes flickered. "You were able to sense these clearly because of the mansion's wards. Especially those in this room." He glanced briefly at the table. "It will be more difficult to sense objects elsewhere."

Doumeki glanced at the objects on the table. After a few moments he realized what the butler meant. Aside from the items on the table, the room was empty of any sensation.

The butler suddenly turned to Kimihiro. "Would you like something more substantial served in the study, my lord?"

Kimihiro seemed as surprised as Doumeki at the sudden change in topic. "A plate would be fine." He glanced at Doumeki. "Maybe two."

Hikideshi nodded. He reached for the plate and brush on the table.

"Hikideshi." Kimihiro picked up the brush, preventing the butler. "I'll put it back."

Hikideshi smiled slightly and bowed his head. "As you wish, my lord." And taking the plate and canister, he quietly left the room.

Kimihiro turned to Doumeki. "The objects you keep in your study." His words were slow, almost contemplative.

Doumeki waited.

"You might want to practise with those first. They'll all safe to handle but they have different origins." His fingers moved slowly over the brush he held, tracing the silver plum blossoms. He hesitated. "You said it was different."

Doumeki was somewhat thrown by the sudden change of topic. "Different?"

Kimihiro looked up with a defensive, almost embarrassed look. "The brush and…me." His voice faded away at the end but Doumeki heard it.

He wasn't quite sure what Kimihiro was asking but he could see that it was important to him. Doumeki thought for a moment, trying to phrase it properly. "The brush is a soft warmth. You're like a hot fire."

"Oh." Kimihiro seemed a bit downcast, as if that wasn't what he'd expected to hear.

"It suits you." Kimihiro wasn't a sedate warmth by any standards.

Kimihiro gave him a wary, startled look. A complex expression crossed his face. "Thank you." His voice was uncertain as if he wasn't used to receiving compliments.

There was an awkward silence for a few moments and then Kimihiro cleared his throat. "There are lots of dangerous items circulating at the moment. If you receive any suspicious gifts, take them to Aurion. He'll know right away if they're a threat." He looked down at the brush. "In that case you should bring them to me. I'll-"

There was low growling noise.

Kimihiro blinked, eyes turning towards him. Comprehension flashed across his face followed by an irritated look which wavered in the face of growing amusement. "I suppose we should go to the study before you starve."

xXx

Evening found Doumeki staring out the glass doors of his study, deep in thought. Only paying the slightest attention to Riku who had just entered to lay another pile of documents on his desk.

_If you receive any suspicious gifts..._

"Riku?" Doumeki was still staring out into the gardens. "I need you to bring me that last gift from Lady Hishida."

Riku had paused in exiting the room and he now fixed a slightly worried on Doumeki. There had had been a concerned look on his face since the prince had started requesting files. He hesitated a moment, clearly debating on whether to speak before finally settling on an affirmative. "Yes, my lord." He quietly left the study, the door clicking shut behind him.

Doumeki turned his gaze to the two glass cabinets that lined the opposite wall of the room. He knew the origin of only a few; more than half of them had been Haruka's, left to him with the Ward. Doumeki hadn't handled any of them extensively before – their transport and placement in their current housing had been carried out by servants. But now that he was thinking about them, his interest was piqued. He found himself looking at the odd objects in a different light.

They were safe, Kimihiro had said and advised him to practise on them, to try and sense their origins.

Doumeki stood and crossed the room, stopping in front of the glass-fronted cabinets to stare at their contents. He couldn't feel anything like he had the objects at the Watanuki mansion. He could only assume that the wards of his household were constructed on different lines; Kimihiro's mansion had been build to guard against supernatural influences on a scale greater even than the Southern Keeper's home.

He examined the strange array of objects. Bells on frayed ribbons, small paper dolls, and array of small knives, various ritual objects and several pieces of jewellery sat on the shelves. It was one of the last that caught his eye. A simple smoothed pebble attached to a plain leather thong. It had come from his grandfather's collection and for the simple reason that it appeared so out of place among the other objects, Doumeki was curious about how it had fallen into Haruka's hands. And why it had been placed among all the other items which had a clear ritualistic link while this did not.

There was a knock at the door. Doumeki turned to see Riku entering the room, a small box held in one hand. "Your Highness," He didn't seem surprised to see Doumeki had moved but his eyes drifted briefly towards the large cabinets the prince was standing next to. "Lady Hishida's gift." He held out the small box.

Doumeki took it carefully in hand. He had half been expecting to feel something but there was no strange warmth or chill that met his skin. It was as if it was exactly what it appeared - a simple container of polished wood.

Riku had a slightly anxious look on his face. "Your Highness." His voice was hesitant. "Are you reconsidering-"

"No." He had no intention of accepting Lady Hishida's gifts. He stared at the box in his hand. Despite its harmless appearance, he was still wary of it. Enough that he wanted to check and see if his suspicions were warranted. Decision made, he started heading towards the door.

"Your Highness?" Riku was watching him in some concern.

Doumeki paused, in the act of opening the door. "I'll be back soon." And he left, leaving his confused aide in the study. No doubt puzzled by his master's strange actions since he had returned to the Ward.

A few minutes later, Doumeki walked into the stables, holding the small box firmly in one hand. Yuoko peered out of her stall as he approached and Doumeki paused to lay a hand on her neck. The mare's eyes half closed at the touch. She was getting old and Doumeki knew she would soon be reaching the end of her life. He rubbed his hand in a small circle and then lifted his hand with a small pat. Yuoko softly nudged his retreating hand then turned back to her manger.

The next stall was empty. After Kimihiro's visit yesterday Junius had been making a nuisance of himself to the point that he was disturbing all the other horses. Doumeki had ordered him removed to his estates outside the city. The temperamental stallion had been a gift from his mother and Doumeki had never warmed to the animal. He preferred to take Yuoko if he went riding. Not that he rode outside his estates these days. The times of social riding in the parks and at formal hunts had been left behind with the rest of his royal duties and Doumeki preferred it that way.

Aurion, however, was in his stall. The colt knew he was coming and was peering down the aisle at him. As soon as Doumeki came in range the dark questing nose was investigating his empty hand, searching for the customary peppermint. Doumeki allowed it for a moment before lifting the box that he held in his other hand.

The colt's attention immediately turned to the offered object. Doumeki watched closely as the horse extended a careful nose towards it, nostril flaring. Aurion scented the small box curiously for a few moments then lost interest, ignoring it for Doumeki's sleeve.

Doumeki frowned. Even if it was safe, the gift still made him uneasy. It was possible it was the source that had him wary about the object but Doumeki was hesitant about letting the matter go.

A small sound had him turning around. Kouki was approaching the stall, brush in hand. He bowed as he saw Doumeki's gaze on him.

Doumeki nodded and moved out of the way so that the young man could enter Aurion's stall. He watched as Kouki avoided the curious nudges and got down to the serious business of brushing the shimme down. The colt practically melted under the ministrations of the brush, leaning into the strokes and eyes sagging shut in an expression of equine bliss.

"He likes you." It was clear that Kouki was the right choice for the shimme.

The young man ducked his head in a shy gesture, embarrassed but still brushing the colt's coat with long firm strokes. "He's nice."

Doumeki watched them for a moment then turned to leave. A sudden thought, however, caused him to pause. "Kouki. Is there anyone Aurion doesn't like?"

The young man's brow furrowed as he thought about the question, not stopping in his task. After a few moments there was a shake of the head.

Doumeki nodded and continued on his way out of the stables. The air was already cooling as he walked out into the stable yard. A breeze was beginning to pick up, shifting his hair into his eyes, but Doumeki ignored it, intent on returning to his study. He had requested the files on all the wardens serving in the Southern Quarter and he intended to review as many of them as he could before sunset.

Sensing the influence of the supernatural in certain objects hadn't been the only lesson Hikideshi had intended to teach.

xXx

Hikideshi cleared the plates from the table. "His Grace is extremely protective of you."

Kimihiro was somewhat unnerved by the phrasing of that. "Protective?" He wasn't quite sure that was the way to put it.

The butler was deep in thought. He barely registered the query. "When he sensed the canister he instinctively moved to shield you." His voice was distracted.

Kimihiro recalled the move. Doumeki did it a fair bit, as if he thought his latent abilities would shield Kimihiro. The lord frowned. Except Doumeki hadn't known until recently that he _had_ latent abilities.

"That could cause a problem." Hikideshi's eyes narrowed. He turned to regard Kimihiro. "Not only does it draw attention to him, at this point you are best able to deal with any danger."

The vote of confidence was reassuring even if the previous assessment was not. "I don't know why he does it." Putting himself in harm's way like that when Kimihiro was tasked with protecting him? Doumeki was an idiot.

Hikideshi smiled. "Perhaps he feels that you're worth protecting."

A prince protecting a lord? Even though they were friends, it was Kimihiro who was meant to protect Doumeki not the other way round. Doumeki had no point to act the way he did-

A thought popped unbidden into his head. Unless Doumeki liked him.

That thought floored him for a moment. With Doumeki as socially inept as he was, it was hard to tell. The prince was so extraordinarily blunt and forward it was hard to imagine him harbouring such delicate emotions.

But Doumeki hadn't really been concealing anything, had he? There were all those touches, those careful (for Doumeki) enquiries, the concern about his safety. It all took on another appearance now that he thought about it. Dare he think that Doumeki's continued visits hadn't been for duty or even stubborn curiosity? That it had been to see _him_?

It was frightening how the thought dismayed him and lightened his mood at the same time. He didn't want Doumeki to like him. Not in that way. It would complicate things, change everything when he was just getting used to having Doumeki around. It would never work. Not that he would want it to anyway-

He suddenly recalled Doumeki's touch, the intent warm look in his eyes. And realised that he was feeling somewhat warm just thinking about it. To his horror, Kimihiro found himself wondering what it would be like to be in a relationship with Doumeki.

His mind started throwing frightened denials but it didn't chase away the warmth from his face or slow the increased beating of his heart. The panicked denials didn't seem to do anything at all except highlight how frightening the whole situation was.

Kimihiro clenched his hands in his hair, tightening his grip in hopes that the pain would chase away the _thought_ of-

"My lord?" Hikideshi had paused in gathering the plates and was now peering at him in concern.

Kimihiro immediately released the grip on his hair. "I'm fine." Except for the horrid possibility that stubbornly refused to stop rattling around in his head. It was Yuuko's fault for all those insinuating, _blatantly_ untrue comments… He tried to focus on the topic at hand. "Doumeki was able to sense the danger in the canister - I wasn't expecting that."

"His Grace seems to have highly developed instincts about such things." He cast a look at Kimihiro. "Not unlike his predecessor."

Haruka. Kimihiro frowned. It was inevitable that Doumeki would possess some of his grandfather's abilities. It was simply surprising that he didn't have sight as well. Though from what Kimihiro had been told, Doumeki's father hadn't shown signs of any abilities at all. It had been part of why the queen had been so well-disposed towards Kazuki Doumeki in the first place.

Kimihiro frowned, not even noticing as Hikideshi quietly slipped out of the room. It had been a long day and he had more things to think about than he had when the day had started.

Not the least of which was Doumeki's regard of him and the disturbing signs that his own reactions indicated he might be staring to view the prince as more than a friend.

xXx

1) Small, round baked goods that I believe most Americans refer to as cookies. amused Though I don't know how they came to be called that. Dialect differences are so weird.

xXx

Well, I did say Kimihiro was going to start moving, I just didn't specify how XD And it only took a year to get this far XD Hahahaha…ha…ha…. grin

Wheee! So lots going on here. You got to see more of Kimihiro's tenants (and there were a few hints about the past in there XD), Alastaire gave us all the run down of the current politcal situation and some lovely foreshadowing, more Yuuko, He showed up again (couldn't resist it could you? XD), we got to Kiyoimizu, met a spirit and a long-dead Doumeki, Carrington spilled about Kimihiro and Haruka, and Hikideshi taught Doumeki some important lessons. Sometimes it's what he doesn't say that's important. And not to mention Kimihiro's realization XD...I'm sort of surprised I packed all that in XD But you can bet that things are moving - both sides have made their moves.

Ahaha- now we can finally get to False Physician next! Good stuff for everyone in that one XD It's a BIG (as in length . and content ) one (Hmmm. Maybe I should just cut it in half? Nah, just kidding XD) so I doubt it will be finished by the end of the month. But that doesn't meant that I'm not going to try :D

xXx


	55. False Physician I

**Reviewer Replies:**

**Sem**: Thanks for all the information! It's interesting to see how words are used in different cultures :) LOL. Our biscuits are definitely had with afternoon tea XD I'm glad to hear it :D Ahahaha. That's entirely up to Watanuki, as you'll see XD *slow smile* I think you might be safe to consider it that last point. It's behind the scenes. *wry grin* If I covered every scene we'd be here for ages. I only write something if it's needed in some way. If not, I won't bother with it. In a way, I suppose that's true. I think so, but that's up to you. *grin* That's a good way to put it.

**yamanana**: I'm glad you're enjoying it XD

**AB**: Thanks for pointing that out XD "Manoeuvre" - I'm using the English spelling here. I think that's pretty good XD It's wonderful to hear that! I'm here to spread the love XD Silly? Not at all.

1) He loves Kimihiro but he's not in love with him.

2) Hmmmm. Before the end of this arc for sure XD

3) How about now? XD

LOL. They're pretty much dialects. If I spoke really informally you probably wouldn't understand half of what I was saying XD

**cookies?:** Ahahaha. I hope it tasted good. There is a bewildering variety of biscuits :) Thank you! I'm glad to hear you're enjoying it :D

**Alice**: LOL. That's okay - it tells me how much you're enjoying it XD

I'm happy to hear that! It is funny XD It took me a lot longer than I thought it would, I'm afraid. I hope you haven't fallen off your seat. *grin* Thanks. To you too XD

**Meredith Noll**: XDD Thanks! Aahahaha. August - that seems so long ago now. Hopefully the wait was worth it XD

**timme:** Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying it. I certainly will. Here it is. Sorry about the wait.

~x~X~x~

AN: It's been a while but I've busy as you can see :) It's a rather large instalment this time. I probably wouldn't recommend that you try in one sitting. Of course that's entirely up to you :D Also if you haven't read Covert Gaze I would recommend you do so. It will give you a better idea of what's going on. And now I'll leave you to it. Enjoy.

~x~X~x~

ENTWINING FATES:

FALSE PHYSICIAN

I

Kimihiro studied the man who stared out the carriage window. Light, cut by the passage of trees either side of the road, flickered across his tanned face. His face was thinner than that of his predecessor's, lacking the broad cheek bones, the thin mouth somewhat smaller (though that could be because it was never stretched into smiles) and his jaw was slightly longer. Features that were likely a result of his mother's blood. But he had the same nose and the same eyes of the previous Keeper. Eyes that were permanently half-lidded. That looked so disinterested on the face before him and had been so sly on the other that he remembered.

Those pale eyes.

The strange colour should have brought back memories of Him. Blood and pain. The death of his parents. But it didn't. They reminded him of Haruka and the older man had never been frightening. More like the opposite.

Doumeki's eyes slid from the passing scenery to catch him staring.

Kimihiro averted his gaze, mortified to feel warmth rising in his cheeks. He'd been staring and now he was blushing. The stupid prince was probably getting the wrong impression and -

Kimihiro ground his teeth. No matter how much they resembled each other, there couldn't be two more different men.

~x~X~x~

Doumeki watched the other man sharing the carriage with amusement. At the moment Kimihiro seemed to be doing his best to crush the head of his cane, his fingers clenched around it so tightly that Doumeki fancied he could hear the metal starting to give way. The picture was all the more amusing with the colour suffusing his face. Even with the way he was staring down, hair hanging down to cover part of his face, Doumeki could still see the colour in Kimihiro's normally pale cheeks.

He had been somewhat surprised to find Kimihiro watching him. It had been a considering stare rather than the glares that he was used to. A frank scrutiny that was softened by the look in those dark blue eyes. Thoughts that hinted that the lord was not just seeing what was before him.

But then Kimihiro had turned away, colour slowly rising in his cheeks. Doumeki was suddenly curious what Kimihiro had been thinking and whether his reaction at being caught was something more than embarrassment. But just as suddenly there was that defensive anger that always arose when Kimihiro was embarrassed or caught in a situation he was uncomfortable with. Doumeki found it just as charming as his embarrassment had been moments before. Though somewhat more amusing.

For a few moments Doumeki said nothing, simply watched as the lord's angry agitation increased. His hands always betrayed him first. Either by twitching in aborted movements (Doumeki had tried pushing to find out what Kimihiro would do with his hands when he was angry but to no avail so far) or clutching hard onto the nearest object and trying to squeeze the life out of it (Doumeki had the suspicion that it was usually a substitution for his neck).

His face would follow suit. Sometimes, like now, Kimihiro would hide his face in an effort to control his expression. But Doumeki had seen it enough times that he knew the whole process by heart. At first there would be that split-second puzzled, almost affronted expression - almost as if the lord was asking why Doumeki was acting the way he was and why was Kimihiro stuck with him. And then the anger would kick in. Kimihiro's lips would grow thinner as he restrained the words that no doubt lay heavy on his tongue. The fine brows would lower over his dark eyes, which would glitter and start to warm to their heated glare.

And if Doumeki had gotten the timing right, his anger would become vocal.

Doumeki had seen the process countless times and found he could never get enough of it. No matter how many times he saw it, Kimihiro's anger was something that never failed to amuse him.

And then there was the aspect that Doumeki found the most intriguing about his companion. Kimihiro was honest in everything he did, from his anger to his embarrassment. Not even his politeness was a pretence - he actually meant the pleasantries he stuck to. Nothing was empty and everything meant something. Kimihiro showed exactly what he was.

Having been surrounded by lies and pretence all his life, Doumeki found it was something he actively sought out. Perhaps that was in part why he continued to jab the lord to get the reactions out of him.

Of course, it was probably a result of the amusement he got out of it, too.

This time, as it became clear that the cane would break before Kimihiro exploded, Doumeki reluctantly decided to let it go. There would be plenty of opportunities later and, in truth, Doumeki was curious about what had happened. "How did you know it wasn't an angry field spirit?"

Kimihiro's hand twitched around the head of the cane. But after a moment he began to answer. "It had all the signs that it was. But there was the large pine on the edge of the field." His head rose, his dark blue eyes finally meeting Doumeki's. The embarrassment had been completely replaced by the quiet earnestness that appeared whenever he began speaking of the second world.

Doumeki had found that while he knew the basics, Kimihiro always knew about the exceptions - things that were never discussed in religious texts. Either something the priests were unaware of or because that knowledge was thought as irrelevant. Sometimes even the books Kimihiro had given him were silent on the matter. Recently Kimihiro had seemed to realize his lack of knowledge and whenever he asked took the chance to explain the situation in detail.

Much like Haruka had done when he was younger before they had parted ways.

Doumeki studied Kimihiro's face as he talked. The steady blue gaze. The too-pale skin and the faint smudges under his eyes. Even his face gave away who he was. It was as if he couldn't hide anything.

But Doumeki knew that he was. Honest as he was, Kimihiro's silence omitted the truth.

His stare seemed to unsettle Kimihiro. The dark blue eyes started to shift uneasily, faltering from their steady regard to a series of darting glances that ended with his eyes falling and his voice trailing off as he ended his explanation. When his fingers began to move uneasily, Doumeki took pity and turned to stare out the window again.

He would wait. Kimihiro would tell him eventually.

~x~X~x~

"My Lord." Hikideshi was there to take his coat as Kimihiro stepped into the relative warmth of the foyer. Kimihiro let out a little sigh to be back within the warded walls of the mansion. It was wearying to venture out into the open where he was subject to the roiling attentions of various spirits. He was protected by Doumeki's presence, of course, but there was something about doing it in the colder weather that made him more tired than it ought to.

Once he was free of the coat and had taken off his gloves, Hikideshi handed him a missive from his pocket. "A letter came for you while you were out."

Kimihiro accepted the envelope, all-too aware of Doumeki's curious gaze. The prince had been staring at him ever since he had caught Kimihiro's gaze in the carriage and Kimihiro was starting to get somewhat nervous about it. There was something about that pale gaze, an expectant patience, that had him on edge. And whenever Kimihiro thought about what Doumeki might be waiting for- He'd rather not dwell on that.

Kimihiro turned his attention firmly to the letter, trying to forget about Doumeki's watchful presence. It was easier to ignore him than try to work out what was going through the prince's mind.

The familiar flowing hand that had written the _Lord Watanuki_ on the envelope was immediately recognizable. Even before he turned it over to see the seal, dark blue wax imprinted with a dove perched on a lyre of oak branches, Kimihiro knew who the sender was. Lady Dexter.

"Tea is ready in the study, my lord." Hikideshi was still in the foyer, having taken Doumeki's coat as well. "I will bring some refreshments." There was a slight nod to Doumeki. "I'm sure His Grace will not mind waiting while you read the letter."

Kimihiro's eyes narrowed. So it was urgent. Usually he would have left it until Doumeki was gone. "There should be some pastries." He ignored Doumeki's suddenly intent look. Hopefully the sweets would keep him occupied long enough to let him read the letter in some semblance of peace. The crunching of pastry was always preferable to the prince's probing questions. And there would be questions.

Kimihiro had no intention of explaining how he knew Lady Dexter.

Hikideshi bowed and left in the direction of the kitchen. Kimihiro watched him for a few moments then tightened his grip on the letter in his hand. A glance at Doumeki showed the prince was curiously watching Hikideshi's departure. Trying to work out where the kitchen was, no doubt.

Kimihiro crossed the foyer and started off towards the study, trusting that Doumeki would follow. The prince had the habit of following him whenever he started moving. It was an annoying habit but one Kimihiro found could work to his advantage. When he wanted to snap the other man out of one of his thinking spells, for example. If they were thinking spells – it was always hard to tell with Doumeki. A small smile crossed his lips as Doumeki's footsteps started up behind him, lengthening until the prince was at his side.

His attention returned to the letter. Hikideshi had indicated it was urgent but Kimihiro couldn't work out what the contents could be. The most pressing information that Lady Dexter had to convey was usually the advent of some social occasion or the latest news that was ripping through the court gossip. And sometimes a hesitant warning to avoid certain people in court.

The lady seemed to have taken it upon herself to watch out for his interests in the social scene even though his last appearance had been more than six years ago. There were passing references to certain lords and ladies. Quiet observations that their conversation tended to laud the latest progress and condemn those who openly adhered to the old ways. And sometimes a comment that being in the presence of certain people made her uneasy. Kimihiro could read between the lines easily enough that he could see what she was trying so delicately convey. He still had enemies in the glittering court and its faithful adherents.

And then there were the hints about the rumours that were circulated about him. Always delicately phrased in order not to distress him, a gesture that touched him for it showed a care for his emotions that was typical of the older woman. It was clear that hearing them had upset her and she was trying to spare him the same.

Kimihiro was already aware of most of them. Many of his tenants attended the markets not only to sell their produce but to gather the rumours that were the talk of the capital. The less than flattering picture that was still painted of him: the solitary lord who had gone mad and now locked himself up on his estates, fearing to venture out. The rumours were raked up with each new advancement in the capital, a reminder of why the old ways were better left behind, relics that were only kept by outcasts and the mentally unstable.

It wasn't the truth of course. Most of those who retained their links with the past and continued their patronage of the shrines and the Wards were common folk. People who held their belief as something sacred that could not be replaced with the material blandishments that progress held out. The rumours were mostly a court fabrication that had been spread through the masses in attempts to sway the commons from their beliefs.

And now with Lady Halstead's removal to the Northern Ward, they had grown more vicious. He was rumoured of having been the cause of Lady Halstead's latest illness and naturally enough many of the misfortunes of recent years were also piled up at his doorstep. The flood of the Kurokawa, the rise of the tide plague and the great boating accident were now being linked to his name, as well. There had even been whispers that he had been responsible for his parents' deaths.

Kimihiro's hands tightened unconsciously on the envelope he held. It was only when the paper's crinkling reached his ears that Kimihiro realised what he was doing and he immediately loosened his grip. He could feel Doumeki's gaze on him but resolutely ignored him.

Part of the problem was his own isolation, he knew. Without being seen by the populace, people were free to fling accusations. That he made no reply and no one stood up in his defence made it appear he was accepting the blame. Kimihiro grimaced. The irony was that the efforts he made to make himself invisible were the very thing that fuelled the rumours.

The warded door of the study came into view and Kimihiro opened it to let Doumeki and himself in. The silver and black enamel flashed as he closed the door behind him. Hikideshi had built up the fire and the room was comfortably warm, a welcome change from the chilly corridor. The tea service sat on the table but Kimihiro made his way over to the small writing desk set near the window to make the most of the natural light. "Take a seat. I'll be only a moment."

Doumeki settled himself into his armchair, taking up his habitual comfortable sprawl, hands settled in his lap. "Who's it from?"

Kimihiro hesitated slightly as he took his seat at the desk. "A friend." And so saying he busied himself retrieving the letter opener on the desk, a simple silver blade, and set to breaking the wax seal. It split apart neatly and Kimihiro opened the envelope, retrieving the pages that had been carefully tucked inside. A faint powdery scent filled the air and Kimihiro felt somewhat better despite the possibility of bad news. He started to read accompanied by the faint sounds of Doumeki helping himself to the tea service.

_Dear Kimihiro,_

Kimihiro couldn't help but feel his mood lighten at the familiar address. The lady had been quick to give her own name and rather delighted to receive his. The address was always filled with the good cheer that he remembered from their brief meeting. Just as that rest of her letters often read like the bubbly conversation that she indulged in person.

_I hope this letter finds you well. With the sudden change to cooler weather there are less faces at court as illness compels more people to seek their sickbeds. Some have also gone north to seek warmer climes but they are in the minority. Most are determined to be in the capital for the New Years celebrations. They are promising to be a spectacular event this year and everyone is a flutter about what to wear. I feel that warm colours are the best choice. With the loss of all the colours in winter, there's only more of a need to wear bright things ourselves! _

_But the cold change does hold promise for the spring. I was afraid that the late winter would mean the garden would suffer in spring but now the cold is here, I can see that spring will be wonderful this year! The bulbs will be springing up in earnest and promise to give quite a display once winter ends. I have instructed Matthews to have some planted outside my window so that I can see when they first flower. I am looking forward to see the bright blooms once more, not to mention the wisteria and cherry blossoms! The garden looks so drab at this time of year. The pines and prospect of plums are my only consolation. You must come over for a visit when the weather turns again! I have a lovely azalea bush that has the most glorious flowers. It never fails to put on a colourful display. _

_I'm afraid I've been rambling again. And kind as you are to let me, you must be wondering what matter requires such an urgent dispatch._

There was obviously a pause for careful thought for the next section was written in a slightly different hand. The looping letters becoming more precise and not as free-flowing.

_I have been visiting the Northern Ward for quite some time. Lord Dexter had a stroke several years ago and his strength has never recovered so that he could return home. I visit several times a week but it has only recently come to my attention that there is something wrong with the Ward._

The door opened and Kimihiro looked up to see Hikideshi entering with a tray of pastries. He absently acknowledged the butler's bow. A glance at Doumeki showed the prince's gaze fixed on the plate in Hikideshi's hands and Kimihiro turned his attention back to the letter in his grasp.

The careful handwriting continued, as Lady Dexter came to the matter which had so disturbed her. _Lord Dexter's condition is such that his health changes from day to day. There are times where it is as if he had never been ill and then there are the days when his illness clearly manifests itself. But recently the instances of the latter have been occurring more frequently. While such a thing is to be expected after time._ Kimihiro could almost sense the sadness behind the brisk words _Lord Dexter's condition has been stable for some time and the recent change alarmed me._

It was the end of the page. Kimihiro slid it behind the thin sheaf of pages to reveal the next, eyes glued to the missive.

_I consulted with Lord Dexter's physician and he, too, was puzzled by my lord's decline. He made the comment that several patients at the Ward had recently had experienced a similar down turn in health and suggest it might have been a result of the bleak weather. _

_However, I do not believe this is the case. There is no question that the care the patients have been given is the best available - and I in no way wish to blame any of the dedicated people who care for those in the Northern Ward. But it is clear that there is something wrong. There have been deaths within the main ward and several of those who are housed in the private wards have been stricken with secondary illness. At times when I have visited, I feel a chill as if death itself passed me._

Kimihiro felt a corresponding chill at her words. Lady Dexter was not gifted in any supernatural way but she was a perceptive woman. For her to mention such feelings suggested that they had unnerved her to the point where she was willing to confide in him.

_It was only recently that another possibility occurred to me. I was talking to a young gentleman at a gathering held by Lady Irving. The young man seemed somewhat nervous of his surroundings and I began talking to him in hopes that he might become more at ease._ Kimihiro smiled. He could easily picture that. A scene similar to the auction, no doubt.

_He was quite the pleasant conversationalist once he began talking and I found myself telling him about the Ward. He didn't laugh as I had expected but took the situation rather seriously and recommended that I seek out a practitioner for advice on the matter. I was going to ask who he would recommend when we were interrupted by a rather intense young man with a slightly rakish manner. He turned out to be looking for my companion and they excused themselves soon after. As a result I was left with my question unasked._

Kimihiro's eyes narrowed. He had an idea of who those two men were. He hadn't met them but he knew them by reputation, just as he knew most of the practitioners in the city. Yuuko had dealt with them in the past. They specialized in the retrieval of certain objects and he wondered briefly why they had been at Lady Irving's celebration.

_I confess that I have no experience in such matters. I have never been very devout nor exposed to anything that could be considered out of the ordinary. I hesitate to ask, but I was wondering whether you would have any advice to give in the situation. Aside from His Highness, you are the only person I know who is knowledgeable in these matters._

It was not surprising that she was asking him for aid in preference to Doumeki - he was a prince after all - but Kimihiro was touched by her trust. And glad that she had taken the matter to him rather than seeking out a practitioner herself. Most of them were fakes and conmen who preyed on the populace. Those with real power tended to stay out of the spotlight - only if someone was really determined would they find a true practitioner.

_I will write to you again soon._

_Yours Sincerely,_

_Elizabeth._ The signature bore it's usual flourish: elaborate loops under the e and z, the h terminating in an intricate scroll that underlined the name. (1)

But there was a post script a few lines below. _I have taken the liberty to send you some bulbs as well. The gentleman who received me when I visited your estate made a comment that your gardens had recently suffered and there was a distinct lack of colour. I hope that the crocuses will provide you some relief from winter's bleakness._

The addition alarmed and warmed him at the same time. He was slightly astonished at the gift. But exactly how long had Hikideshi talked to Lady Dexter that day? And on the state of the gardens of all things-

A noisy crunch jerked Kimihiro's attention from Lady Dexter's letter. He turned to see Doumeki at close quarters, standing behind him and intently reading over his shoulder. A pastry hung from his mouth, his large hands occupied holding a fragile saucer and small teacup. His eyes met Kimihiro's eyes as he chewed, clearly not seeing anything wrong with his behaviour.

Kimihiro glared at him, folding the letter and hiding its contents from sight. Though it was too late now. Who knew how long Doumeki had been standing there. Absorbed in the contents of the letter, Kimihiro hadn't even noticed him at all. Even though the crumbs on his shoulder and, Kimihiro noticed with rising censure, a few scattered on the desk, suggested Doumeki had literally been leaning over him. He was only glad that Lady Dexter hadn't been giving one of her reports on Doumeki's movements. He didn't want to know what the prince's reaction to that would have been.

Especially if his suspicions were correct-

Kimihiro surveyed the scattered flakes of pastry. Half a dozen angry comments flashed through his mind before he settled on one. "Weren't you taught that it's rude to read other people's letters?" To say nothing of spilling crumbs all over them.

There was a moment of thought as Doumeki chewed. "No."

Just what sort of education had Doumeki been given? Such a simple thing was a basic tenant of manners. Kimihiro plucked the flakes from his shoulder and hesitated a moment before setting them onto the desk and sweeping them into a small neat pile. Doumeki simply watched him as if the simple act of cleaning was the most interesting thing he had ever seen, still chewing on the last of the pastry which had disappeared into his mouth. Not, thankfully, spilling any more over him.

"When do you plan to go?" It was slightly muffled through the mouthful but Kimihiro could understand it. Something that was nearly as alarming as the fact that Doumeki knew he intended to go to the Northern Ward himself.

"Tomorrow." If the matter was as serious as it sounded, it would be best to deal with it as soon as possible. He glanced at Doumeki. "Are you free?"

Doumeki took a drink from the fragile teacup. "What time?"

Kimihiro swept up the crumbs from the desk and deposited the handful on the saucer Doumeki held. "First thing in the morning." His eyes narrowed as they fell on the plate of demolished pastries that sat on the table. "Eat before you come."

A sudden movement had him turning back to Doumeki. The prince was just lifting a hand from his shoulder and brought it to his mouth. "You missed one." He popped the pastry flake into his mouth.

Kimihiro hastily turned away. Trying to ignore how his eyes had strayed to Doumeki's lips.

~x~X~x~

1) Signatures tend to be elaborate, incorporating at least a basic warding line to protect a person's name. The purpose has been long forgotten by most but the penmanship still remains.

~x~X~x~

XD

Good Lord, now I've done it . You can probably guess who those two young men were.


	56. False Physician II

ENTWINING FATES:

FALSE PHYSICIAN

II

Riku was there to meet him in the foyer when he returned to the Southern Ward. Just by looking at the tense way his aide was standing within the entrance, Doumeki could tell that there was something wrong.

"A missive has arrived, Your Highness." The cue of his title had Doumeki's shoulders tensing in anticipation. Riku's face was properly composed but his eyes were uneasy. "Her Majesty's messenger came while you were out." He held it out.

Doumeki accepted the missive, giving it a long look. A letter from his mother could mean only one thing.

Doumeki shrugged off his coat and handed it over with his gloves to the waiting servant. "Join me in the study." After what he had asked his aide to do, it was likely that his mother's message concerned Riku as much as it did him. In some ways he was surprised that it hadn't come earlier. Nothing escaped his mother's notice.

Riku glanced down at the letter Doumeki held and nodded. "Yes, my lord."

Doumeki didn't bother talking as they walked the corridors to his study. Except for nods of acknowledgement to the bowing servants they encountered, Doumeki was focused on reaching his study to read the letter that held such importance. It was more a wish to get the situation over with than any joy at the prospect. His mother's letters were not usually something he enjoyed.

The household for the Southern Keeper had been constructed during one of the earlier periods of the empire and as a result, most of the rooms were linked by long defensible corridors designed to confuse an enemy should they breach the outer walls. They had once been a series of receiving rooms but had been converted to purposes that matched the times. Tatami had been replaced by wood and carpet and the entire complex had been turned into a modern manor with dining rooms, studies, library and parlours. Only one thing remained mostly untouched. The private apartments of the Keeper. They were still at the end of the complex, closest to the gardens and the Ward's central shrine hidden beyond. As a result it was a fair walk to the Keeper's study, one of the last rooms that marked the end of the section of the building open to visitors and guests and the beginning of Doumeki's private apartments.

Doumeki entered the study and settled himself behind his desk, motioning for Riku to take a seat with a distracted gesture. He cast a glance at the arrow resting on the desk's surface and then turned his attention to the missive his mother had sent him.

Doumeki broke the seal and unfolded the crisp white parchment. Black on white met his eyes. Slanted, precise letters that practically cut with the anger which had wielded the hand that wrote them.

_Shizuka._

_I have said nothing about your recent activities but I can no longer remain silent. I advise you to cease the dangerous game you are playing and attend to your duties. Though you are crown prince no longer, you still have your duty to the empire. I expect you to focus on your duties as Keeper and desist from these ventures into superstition and folly. It led to the fall of your predecessor and I will not see it do the same to you._

The angry missive was unsigned. But it didn't need to be. The royal seal and the messenger who had delivered it were enough. Even without them the address was telling. His mother was the only person alive who addressed him by his first name.

He passed the letter to Riku, who took it gingerly, and turned to stare at the glass cabinets across the room. Superstition and folly. His mother had always been against the old ways that lingered on in the face of progress. A loathing that had increased after his father's death.

It had resulted in Haruka's exclusion form the royal apartments. No matter how many times he tried to contact his grandson, Haruka's moves had been blocked. And Doumeki, faced with a void where his grandfather had once been and left to endless tutors who cloistered him in stifling lessons in etiquette and politics, had been unaware of it. He had only known what his mother had said. That his grandfather no longer wished to see him. He hadn't believed it as first. But as the days turned into weeks and weeks into months, the doubts had grown weaker and Doumeki had started to believe his mother's words. The lack of an invitation back to the Southern Ward the next time they met had only been a confirming incident.

His grandfather was not going to come and take him to the Southern Ward. He had left him to his mother and the stifling silence that was now the royal apartments. It was as if the death of his father had sucked the life out of the place. Not even when his mother had remarried and his younger brother was born did the dull atmosphere lighten. Doumeki hated it.

With years passed and the benefit of hindsight, Doumeki could see that his mother's solid dislike of his grandfather was as much for the religion that he represented as much as Haruka himself.

_It led to the fall of your predecessor and I will not see it do the same to you._

Was that figurative or was his mother suggesting that it had been Haruka's work as Keeper that had lead to his death? Doumeki his attention to the man who had helped him break free of the palace. "Riku."

The aide had been rereading the missive, a look of concern on his face. But he now looked up to regard the prince. "My lord?"

"Do what you can to get that report." It held answers he needed.

Riku's eyes returned to the paper he held with a worried look. "Yes, my lord." His voice was quiet, subdued. He was fully aware of his prince was asking. To act directly counter to what his queen desired. At the very least it would drawn the queen's not inconsiderable ire down upon them both. Her Majesty did not brook defiance of her wishes. No matter whom that person was.

Riku cleared his throat, catching Doumeki's attention. "There was also a verbal message." The aide looked distinctly uncomfortable. "I was instructed to give you several files."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed. His eyes swept the desk and located the neat pile that had been added in his absence.

Riku's eyes lowered. "Her Majesty insists that you read through them."

Something to prove her case, no doubt. His mother had always believed in ramming home a point once she had gotten it across. He eyed the papers. "What are they?"

Riku hesitated, the uncommon reluctance keying Doumeki to the nature of their contents before he even said a word. "The official reports on the outbreak of the tide plague and the flooding of the Kurokawa River."

They were two of the most devastating disasters to strike the capital in the last century. The outbreak of the tide plague had been a sickness carried through the city's water supply. Thousands had died from the contaminated water, most of them the poor who lived on the outskirts of the quarters. A break in the sewers had been responsible, a leak that had reached the wells and one of the aqueduct lines that supplied the city. It had taken several months until the situation had been resolved, but enough damage had been done to have the incident labelled as one of the worst outbreaks in the capital's history. It had been modern science, not the Northern Ward that had been the hero of the hour.

The flooding of the Kurokawa, the great river that wound through the capital and connected the city to the sea ports, had occurred only two years before the plague. It had been the result of heavy rains that swept in to deluge the region upstream for several weeks. Aside from causing a series of mudslides and vast crop damage, the torrential rain had caused the river to overflow and burst free from its banks. A flood had been sent downriver and into the capital, engulfing houses and land. Only the quay district of the Southern Quarter, protected against the river's occasional surges, had survived unscathed. Doumeki could still remember the uproar that had stirred the palace into a hive of activity. He hadn't seen his mother for several days, the queen busy attending the matter, and he had been left to look after his younger brother in the confusion that followed.

Both were disasters with perfectly logical causes. And both had been attached to Kimihiro in rumour and slander. Doumeki could hardly believe that his mother had presented them as some sort of evidence. As proof that Kimihiro had been at fault or responsible in some way.

But Riku hadn't finished. "And," the aide paused once more, voice very quiet. "The report on the great boating incident."

It took a few moments for Doumeki to speak. "Thank you, Riku."

Still not meeting the prince's gaze, Riku bowed and quietly left the room, shutting the door softly behind him.

Doumeki stared at the closed door for a few minutes before turning his attention to the reports that sat so neatly on the desk's surface.

The great boating incident. It was called simply that. As if the simplicity of the name could somehow shield people from what had happened that day. It was not often spoken of, stiff pride a bulwark against lingering grief.

It had been the inaugural voyage of a new pleasure yacht and many members of the prominent noble families had been aboard. The journey involved a cruise down the river, departing from the palace and ending at the great park Chochin-mori in the Western Quarter. But disaster had struck. Less than halfway through its maiden voyage, the yacht had begun to founder. Within minutes the _Yorokobaseru_ was sinking, pulling down all aboard into the cold waters of the Kurokawa. The nobility was dealt a shattering blow with many of the generation's brightest lost with the ship.

And among them had been Doumeki's father, gone to attend the celebration in his wife's place.

Doumeki stared at the pile of papers. Neat and unassuming on the desk. Giving no sign of what lurked between the pages.

That day had marked a turning point. There was no more laughter in the palace, no more play within the bounds of the palace gardens. None of the warmth which had existed before. With his father gone, his mother had changed. Slowly, bit by bit, she had become more focused on duty, obsessed with the governing of the empire.

And it had been the point when she had started to take her stance against the observation of the old ways. A stance that was more vicious than that of any of her predecessors'. There was no space for old with the coming of the new. In his mother's mind, one cancelled the other out.

Somehow the old religious traditions had become linked to the accident in her mind. The traditional blessing of the yacht to ensure a safe voyage had failed. The _Yorokobaseru_ had sunk and Kazuki Doumeki, the royal consort, her husband, had drowned. The man who was meant to encompass old and new had been lost. It was clear his mother laid the blame of it at the superstitions that she had refused ever since. And by extension Haruka.

Doumeki picked up the broken arrow, carefully turning it in his fingers. Haruka had been banned from the palace grounds soon after, though Doumeki hadn't known it then. Visits to the Southern Ward had stopped as well. And finally, at New Years, the queen had announced her intention to educate her son in the more modern teachings rather than the old ways of superstition and folly. Doumeki had only been able to see Haruka at public functions after that. And then his keepers had ensured that it was only for a limited time.

His gaze fell on the glass cabinets across the room. Exotic objects sat behind the glass. Folded paper, bells, small figurines, cloth dolls and twisted knots of rope. Objects that were in one way or another collected by his grandfather or what he himself had collected through the years. He had kept these things through it all. A reminder of simpler and better times. Useless objects he had often thought. Remnants of superstition and a past long gone.

But protections, according to Kimihiro. Tools of defence against malevolent inhabitants of the second world.

Doumeki's eyes returned to the pile of the documents his mother had sent him. Now with Haruka gone, he could only suppose that the blame had shifted to Kimihiro. Or perhaps it had been all along. The incident with the _Yorokobaseru_ had only happened after Haruka had saved Kimihiro at the crossroads. And both plague and flood had occurred in the years after that, before Kimihiro had retreated to his estates. Viewed that way, it might seem that Kimihiro was the cause.

But it was the concoction of a grief-stricken mind. And not something he would believe.

Doumeki set the arrow back down on the desk and picked up the first report, starting to read. Not, as his mother hoped, in order to be further convinced of Kimihiro's involvement. But rather to gain an insight into his mother's thinking and what her future actions might be.

~x~X~x~

**Thin coils of smoke curled past on a gentle breeze. Doumeki turned his head to see Haruka sitting next to him on the stone bench. A cigarette was clasped between the older man's lips as he stared at a small sprig of cherry blossoms he held between his fingers.**

**Doumeki looked up. More blossoms had opened on the branches that bowed down under their weight. Even as he watched, a handful of petals drifted down to join the spread on the ground. **

**"When did she tell you?" Doumeki kept his eyes fixed on the petals scattered across the slope. Bruised flakes that were wedged between blades of grass, pale pink cut by vivid green.**

**There was movement from the corner of his eye as Haruka rested an arm on his thigh, the smoke from the cigarette held between his fingers drifting slowly sideways to enter Doumeki's vision. "The same time she told everyone else." Haruka's voice gave away no sign of his feelings. His face was pleasantly non-committal when Doumeki fully turned to face him. **

**Haruka kept facing the direction of the pond but his eyes slid sideways to look at his grandson. A small smile crossed his lips when he saw the younger man's expression. "Your mother did what she thought was best at the time." His eyes turned back to the pond. "Whether I agreed with her was immaterial." **

**"You could have told me." Doumeki didn't even try to hide the accusation in his voice. It had been the silence, the lack of explanation, as much as Haruka's absence that had hurt the most. **

**Haruka was silent for a long moment. "I could have." He continued staring into the dark waters below. "But I chose to take the safest course instead." The older man met his gaze directly. "In the end it was the only choice."**

**Faced with that direct stare, Doumeki found he couldn't say anything. There was no humour, no attempt to hide the truth in enigmatic words. Only an open stare tinged faintly with regret. His grandfather hadn't enjoyed the situation anymore than he had.**

**Doumeki turned away. The safest course. For him. He could understand it but the thought didn't still the emotions he felt, only confuse them further. Anger. Regret. Love. A jumble of feelings that were hard to separate. "Is that why you didn't tell me that I could be an exorcist?" About Kimihiro.**

**A glance showed that Haruka had lifted the cigarette to his lips. "It was a possibility, not a certainty." A thin stream of smoke lifted from the end of the cigarette.**

**Doumeki's brows lowered, a spurt of anger running through him. It wasn't an answer.**

**"If I told you, what would you have done?" Haruka's voice was calm, unaffected by Doumeki's silent anger.**

**Sought out his grandfather. Fought harder against his mother's instructions and the teachings that had been forced on him. He knew what the results of that would have been. A wider rift between his mother and his grandfather at a time when the empire was at its least stable. When grief overrode rational thoughts.**

**He glanced over at his grandfather. The sprig of blossoms was being turned slowly between his fingers.**

**Cherry blossoms. The crest of the royal house and part of Kimihiro's.**

**Haruka's actions had protected Kimihiro as well. The thought settled his turmoil somewhat. The thought that what he had been through had protected Kimihiro in some way suddenly made it more bearable. Doumeki found himself letting go of the anger he had been holding onto for so long.**

**There was silence for a while. Doumeki staring down at the lake, a dark warped disk of water, and Haruka smoking silently, sending up thin streamers of smoke. It was a more comfortable silence, the anger and tension drained away. It was almost like it had been so long ago.**

**Haruka was the one to break it. "You're going to the Northern Ward tomorrow." It would have been an idle observation if he hadn't given Doumeki a sideways glance from pale eyes.**

**Doumeki was silent, figuring that needed no reply. Nor, probably, was one expected.**

**Haruka's gaze turned back to the lake and a smile covered his lips. He lifted the cigarette and tucked it into the corner of his mouth. "Visit Etsuko while you're there." **

**Lady Amita. He had been putting off that duty but now he found he had little choice.**

**The older man's smile widened, as if he had heard his grandson's thoughts. He turned the sprig of blossoms in his hand, studying the shape of each flower. "You might want to take some of the gifts she sent with you." Despite his pleasant demeanour, there was a thread of warning, a whisper of caution behind his words.**

**Doumeki's eyes narrowed. "Can you tell me anything else?"**

**Once more Haruka's pale eyes met his grandson's, the sly light in their depths mirroring the curve of his mouth. "Sweet potatoes. Kimihiro is partial to them."**

~x~X~x~

Ehehehe. Sweet potatoes XD


	57. False Physician III

ENTWINING FATES:

FALSE PHYSICIAN

III

Like the other three cardinal wards, the Northern Ward was located on the border of the upper and lower districts in its Quarter. The reasoning behind such a placement was to make the Wards accessible to everybody in the city. In the Northern Ward access was a priority. Even since its founding, the Ward had been dedicated to the warding of disease and physical injury. In a way it was a direct contrast with the Southern Ward, concerned with physical wellbeing instead of one's spiritual health, for life instead of death. Or at least that was what it was at present.

The Northern Ward was the most changed by modernization of all the Wards. It had once been focused on two paths of healing: the physical and spiritual. Invisible wounds resulting from encounters with curses and inhabitants of the second world had been attended to alongside those of the flesh. But that had changed in the last hundred years. The spiritual had waned with the more practical needs of the flesh. Less and less spiritual healers had been recruited until finally only mundane physicians were left.

Now primarily a centre for physical healing, the structure of the Ward had been changed to suit that purpose. The two outer enclosures of the Ward had been totally given up to the new purpose of the Ward. The second enclosure contained the households of the workers and physicians that worked within the hospital which housed the patients admitted into the Ward for treatment. The hospital was located in the outermost ward, a sprawling complex that was now several times the size of the original building that had once stood in the same place. More wings had been added over the years, until it had gained prominence over even the Keeper's household.

The Keeper's household and the inner shrine had remained - to do away with them served no great purpose and they were still landmark features within the capital, even if in the eyes of many they had no remaining purpose. The Keepers, who had once been spiritual healers in their own right, were now left as book-keepers, the managers of the institutions within the Ward bounds, responsible for their running and the hiring of the physicians on their lands. After the abolishment of the festivals it was all that was left to them. None of the spiritual elements remained except for the maintenance of the Ward's shrine which was still held sacrosanct within the two innermost enclosures of the Ward.

The Northern Ward had always been mentioned in old tales of battles, with formidable heroes seeking aid at its open gates. Doumeki now wondered how many of them had sought the second set of healing skills that had now been abandoned.

He cast a glance at Kimihiro. The lord was currently staring at the gate they were standing outside, ignoring the looks he was receiving from those passing through it. Even in the early morning, the flow into the Northern Ward was a steady stream of patients and visitors. Most who were taking a second glance at the young lord staring so intently at the Ward gates.

Doumeki had to admit that Kimihiro was worth staring at. Where on previous outings Kimihiro had sought to dress down, this morning he was making it plain that, even if his lineage wasn't clear, he was from one of the noble bloodlines. The clothes he was wearing were, if not in the latest fashion, still very clearly of the finest quality. Black trousers ended neatly over black boots and his white shirt and grey vest showed under a black jacket decorated with embroidery of bright rain-drenched leaves dripping water. Kimihiro was wearing something normal for a change, though the theme would be more suited to autumn rather than winter. Even the plain coat he usually wore had been discarded in favour of one liberally embroidered with eddying waves of shimmering green and blue ripples that sprouted gently-bending reeds.

With the elegant cane held in one gloved hand and the metallic glitter of his clothes he looked like he belonged in a mansion or club house rather than on the street outside the Northern Ward. An appearance that was any ruined only slightly by the mischief of a slight breeze stirring his short hair into waving spikes and the intense, slightly angry stare Kimihiro was giving the Ward's gateway. No doubt the people who saw him thought that he was somewhat disdainful of using the entrance that was being used by so many commoners.

Doumeki, well familiar with Kimihiro's behaviour by now, was well aware that wasn't the case. It was likely the presence of the gateway itself, rather than anything else that was catching Kimihiro's disapproval. It was one of several that had recently been cut into the Ward's walls to accommodate the need to 'separate the genteel and common flow of visitors'. Doumeki was quite content to let him glare at the walls as much as he wanted but it was gathering attention, something Kimihiro usually did his best to avoid. So he stepped forward and tapped Kimihiro on the shoulder.

Kimihiro immediately snapped to attention. His eyes flashed to Doumeki's face only to blink as he saw Doumeki's expressionless visage. He immediately looked around them and started moving forward once more.

"It there something wrong?" Doumeki easily kept pace with Kimihiro's anger-edged steps as they passed through the gate.

"A gate should never have been placed there." Kimihiro's voice was low due to the people around them but Doumeki could hear him perfectly. "They might as well have pulled down the whole wall."

Doumeki cast a glance back at the small opening in the towering wall that was rapidly disappearing behind them and then turned his attention back to Kimihiro. The lord was scowling, sweeping a dark blue gaze over the path they walked, disapproval plain in the tight lines of his face.

The other visitors to the Ward saw it, too. There was a constant change of direction by those walking down the path as people veered to give the angry lord a wide berth. But Kimihiro was oblivious to it - he would have schooled his expression into more pleasant lines if he had known the effect he was having. For his expression to slip was a sign of just how angry he was.

"Is there a threat?" Doumeki looked at the large stretches of lawn that fronted the various wings of the Ward's hospital. They towered above the low walls, vast modern structures of red brick that rose several stories. From what he knew, the outer walls were the first defence of the Wards. If the wall was as bad as Kimihiro said, then the Northern Ward should be swarming with all sorts of spirits.

Kimihiro's frown deepened, his face taking on a considering cast. His steps slowed as his eyes swept what they could see of the grounds. "There are some things that have slipped through." Kimihiro's eyes narrowed as he stared across the lawn to their right.

Doumeki followed his gaze but saw nothing. But he hadn't really expected to.

"But it's not as bad as it could have been." Kimihiro's voice grew sharp. "Lord Durham must be observing some of his duties as Keeper even if he has allowed this to happen." He was quiet for a moment. "With holes like these, I would expect something worse to have come here. But there isn't any sign of that. Not a visible one." His words were slow, cautious. "But it doesn't mean that something hasn't worked its way deeper into the Ward." He turned to regard Doumeki, dark eyes serious. "Tell me if you sense anything."

Doumeki blinked. Even after Kimihiro had shown him how he could sense things, Doumeki didn't see why he would be asking him when Kimihiro could sense things perfectly well on his own.

A faint smile crossed Kimihiro's lips at his expression. "It will be good practice for you." There was dark humour laced through the words. But he was serious when he added, "And in some ways you're more open to the second world than I am."

"In what way?" There was a old woman being helped by her daughter down the path and Doumeki moved sideways to give them more room.

Kimihiro cast him a sidelong glance, slowing his pace slightly for Doumeki to regain his place beside him. "You sensed something from the pine before I did. My strength is sight. I suspect that eventually you'll able to sense the fluctuations in the second world better than I can."

Able to sense rather than see. Like a blind man developing his other senses to compensate for his lack. Doumeki pondered the implications of that as they drew closer to the entrance of the hospital.

They headed towards the entrance for visitors rather than patients. The latter was at ground level and had a constant flow of people passing through the doors: people coughing and looking generally miserable; a limping man supported by two others; a silent child carried in the arms of middle-aged woman. They were mostly common people - the nobles were usually taken to one of the newer wings that had been erected barely five years ago. They were set up with private rooms and boasted commodities that the poorer inhabitants of the city couldn't hope to afford.

As they turned down the path leading to the main entrance, there was the noise of flapping wings.

Kimihiro stopped walking and turned to the source of the sound.

A lone crow had launched itself from a lintel and was gaining height with deceptively lazily wing beats as it passed above them. It let out a derisive call and then it was disappearing over the outer wall and into the city.

A crow. Doumeki turned to Kimihiro in question.

Kimihiro was staring after the bird, gloved hand clenched tightly over the head of his cane. His lips had tightened into a bloodless line and there was a grim, almost fearful look in his eyes. But then his lips firmed, fine eyebrows lowered as anger flashed into his eyes. He turned back to face the hospital, walking forward once more with long angry strides.

Doumeki stood staring back at the walls for a moment, a feeling of foreboding rising in him, before following.

The main entrance was located in the centre of the building, an imposing facade of arches and columns that surmounted an elegant flight of white marble stairs. They ascended the stairs, Kimihiro's cane rapping sharply on the steps, then walked into the shaded portico that led inside. Kimihiro cast a look at the pair of carved hawks that stared down from the lintel, the faded ward lines trailing across the walls from beneath their talons. His frown deepening for a moment before being wiped away by the pleasant blankness he usually wore in public. After a glance at Doumeki, he took a tighter grip on his cane and opened the door leading into the hospital foyer.

As they entered, tucking gloves into pockets, they were greeted by a cross between practicality and outdated elegance. A row of heavy wood seats upholstered with red velvet ran across the wall opposite the large reception desk that dominated the foyer. There was a low table with an elegant flower arrangement near the seats, a number of neatly folded papers on its surface. Otherwise the space was unadorned except for a faint tracery of ward lines that ran along the walls and the arms of the ward that peeked out from the thick rug underfoot.

There were several people in the room. A modestly-dressed young woman sat quietly on one of the seats, hands folded tensely in her lap. The dark green of her dress and hat didn't do much to enhance her pale complexion, giving her a slightly sickly cast. There was also an older man, a clerk by his appearance, who sat somewhat uneasily a few chairs away. Three women stood behind the reception desk, wearing the uniform of the hospital: the white dresses of nursing staff with the badge of the Northern Ward, a stylized depiction of clouds in pale blue lines overlaid with the Durham crest, three gold stars surmounted by a crescent moon, on their right shoulders. As Kimihiro and Doumeki entered the room, one of them left, disappearing through the large double doors set to one side of the desk.

Kimihiro cast a look at the young woman sitting on the chair as he walked towards the desk. It was more than simple curiosity and Doumeki followed his gaze. But there was nothing that he could see or sense that could suggest why the woman had caught Kimihiro's attention.

One of the women behind the desk lifted her head as they approached. "Gentlemen." She wore the professional smile of a receptionist. "What can I do for you today?"

Kimihiro gave her a small returning smile. "Good morning. My name is Lord Reed." Kimihiro ignored the sidelong glance Doumeki gave him at those words and continued, focused on the woman. "I believe one of my men left word that I would be visiting this morning."

The woman's smile immediately became more genuine. "Lord Reed. We are expecting you." Her smile brightened. "I heard that you are interesting in giving a donation?"

Kimihiro's smile warmed slightly. "I would like to see the work carried out here in order to determine how I might best help."

Doumeki suppressed a smile. A tour of the hospital for a possibly wealthy benefactor. It was a good cover and he wasn't surprised to see it accepted without question. It was fashionable to be seen as a philanthropist and it wasn't uncommon for young nobles to inspect the institutions they were considering to support. Knowing Kimihiro, he was probably serious, not just using the visit as a ruse.

The woman gestured at the other woman behind the desk. She was younger, her hair tied back with in a simple glossy fall and an open, friendly face. "This is Novia. She will show you wherever you wish to go."

Novia. It was one of the names that had become popular in recent years. But the girl's age suggested that her parents had been ahead of the latest trend.

Novia bowed, her dark eyes flicking from Kimihiro to Doumeki, her eyes briefly running over his clothes, before returning to fix firmly on Kimihiro. "If you would follow me, Lord Reed, I'll guide you to one of the public wards first."

Doumeki was amused that he had been over-looked. He had dressed in what had been the norm for their outings; clothes that were fine enough for the expectations of his status as Keeper but not flashy enough to draw attention. Today it was a simple black coat with subdued embroidery of pines befitting the season. Standing next to Kimihiro, he looked plain in comparison. It seemed he wasn't dressed well enough for a noble and had been automatically dismissed as a servant. It was an interesting turnaround.

"That would be fine." Kimihiro nodded. He was giving the perfect appearance of a polite gentleman. Doumeki doubted that anyone would link him with the unstable Lord Watanuki.

Novia walked out from behind the desk and opened one of the double doors. She ushered them in before leading the way down the corridor that was revealed. "This is the original building, built shortly after the Northern Ward was established."

"I saw the ward lines." Kimihiro's comment was casual, but the glance he gave the young woman was not.

"The ward lines?" It was a surprised enquiry. Apparently Novia had no idea of what he was talking about.

"The lines," Kimihiro gestured up to the faint tracery that worked along the walls.

Novia followed his gesture, face clearing. "There's a lot of ancient decoration in the older buildings. There was some discussion a few years ago to remove it, but it was left on the account that it was part of the Northern Ward's heritage."

Kimihiro shot Doumeki a look. It was clear that the outlook of the Ward was mostly secular if something as basic as ward lines were unrecognizable.

They had reached a double set of doors and Novia opened them. "This is one of our public wards. People from all walks of life are admitted here for some of the best medical treatment in the empire."

Doumeki followed her in. There were nurses and doctors walking along the rows. A number of visitors sitting on low stools beside the beds. Doumeki had already walked several steps into the large room when he realized that Kimihiro wasn't with him. He turned to see that Kimihiro had stopped on the threshold, sucking in a breath and looking as if he had just received a body-blow.

Doumeki cast a glance around the room, noting nothing out of the ordinary except for the rows of beds, and took a step closer. "What's wrong?" Up close he could see Kimihiro's face had paled and a slight sheen was building on face. He looked like he was suddenly starting to come down with something.

Kimihiro gave a shaky smile. "I'm not used to such places." His eyes had darkened and moved restlessly through the hall.

A sick room. Where countless numbers of people had died and most of them unpleasantly.

"Is there some problem?" Their guide was looking at them with some concern.

Kimihiro straightened. "No, thank you. I simply over-indulged myself last night." The lie rolled easily off his tongue. If Doumeki didn't know better, he would have believed it. But he did and he couldn't imagine Kimihiro carousing to early hours. "Might we visit one of the quieter wards?"

Novia smiled in understanding. "Of course." She lead them back out, shutting the door. "If you'll follow me this way-"

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro had expected it to be bad but even so he hadn't adequately prepared himself. He had never felt anything like this. The first ward had been worse but this, a quieter ward dedicated to long-term patients, wasn't much better.

The large hall was hazed with a shifting miasma of half-transparent black smoke. It was something like a cross between fog and cloud, but it moved sluggishly through the room like a reluctant lover, clinging to the patients' beds in thicker coils like foul exhalations. It made breathing difficult, filling his lungs uncomfortably until it was a constant struggle not to give into coughing fit that tried to crawl up his throat. The smell didn't help things, either. The air was filled with the scent of sickness: a thick, nearly overpowering, musty smell that half-hid a core of sickly sweetness. It was almost enough to want him to stop breathing all together.

But what Kimihiro could see was ten times as bad. Though the haze, and not all obscured by it, were some of the worst afflictions Kimihiro had ever seen. It was obvious that the loss of the outer wall had been disastrous. What had once been a place free of taint now festered with worst malaise of the second world. Gaichu. Quite literally harmful insects. The filth that that fed on the weak and helpless, accosting the sick as they lay defenceless in their sickbeds. The hospital staff couldn't have done worse to throw their patients into the sewers.

Kimihiro tried not to show his disgust and loathing as he walked with Doumeki behind their guide. But he could feel his jaw clenching along with his hands at his sides as rage started to build up within him. The Northern Ward was meant to protect people at their weakest not subject them to more dangers. It was more than a dereliction of duty. It was tantamount to a death sentence for the patients that lay in these halls. The negligence that was shown here was killing people.

He could sense Doumeki looking at him but Kimihiro ignored him, too focused on what he saw around him to be distracted by the Keeper.

There was a young man on one bed. He was lying in a sea of black filth that only his feet were free of, a black tide that clung to his pale skin and the blankets that covered him. It glistened like a small slippery lake and, as he looked closer, Kimihiro realised it was made up of thousands of writhing threads. Their slow undulations were the source of the shimmer, each of their bodies glistening as they worked their way across the bed. Hundreds more were slipping from underneath the young man's skin to join them. Even as he watched, several fell to the floor to land twitching on the white tile.

A middle-aged woman lay in the next bed. White bandages wrapped around her head and her left arm in bulky strips. At first glance it appeared that she was untouched but Kimihiro made the mistake of opening his sight a fraction. The usual jagged wrench of pain was nothing in the face of what he saw. The bandages were hollow, caverns of flesh riddled with dark growths that had consumed all healthy flesh. Even as Kimihiro stared a mass of black maggots-like forms burst forth from one of the mounds and he nearly gagged. The woman was little more than a gutted corpse infested with parasites.

Each bed held a new horror, each one worse than the last. Kimihiro's chest was tight with the effort it took to breathe, horror and outrage strangling what little air he did manage to get in. Each breath was edged with the urge to succumb to a coughing fit. There were no malevolent spirits in the room but in some ways this was worse. Death lingered here, waiting in the sidelines for pain and misery to finish their glut and move aside.

He caught sight of a man across the aisle and Kimihiro covered his mouth with a shaking hand. The stench that roiled off the bed was truly awful: a mixture of excrement and the putrefaction of decomposition. There were white blades of bone protruding from the rotten flesh that lay on the sheets. This wasn't a person any more, simply a lump of decomposing flesh.

The entire room was a gruesome chamber of horrors, with only a few spots of clear air, centred on a number of potted plants in the room, to provide any relief. Kimihiro could feel the layer of sweat on his skin and the cold chill that seemed to have taken over his body as it fought against the horrid sensations.

Under other circumstances Kimihiro would have been clinging to Doumeki to ward off the visions and sensations that were assailing him. Ashamed as he was to admit it. But Kimihiro was aware that that there was something else beneath it all. A nagging tug, a sensation like the flat of a knife blade laid upon the nape of his neck, something that might just be linked to what Lady Dexter had felt.

So he simply gritted his teeth and steeled himself against the discomfort, the stench and what he was seeing. He had come to the Northern Ward to check the status of the hospital and he wasn't going to let his own weakness prevent him. Not when people's lives depended on it.

**Hel-**

Kimihiro's heart sped up and his eyes flicked around him as he tried to track the source of the choked-off whisper. A glance aside showed that Doumeki didn't sense anything amiss. He was still wearing the bland expression he had adopted since they had walked into the Ward.

**Help us**

It was right in his ear this time and Kimihiro turned his head only to find empty air. Not even the weakest of yurei marking the space. But there had been something. He hadn't imagined the cold touch on his shoulder as if an icy hand had rested there.

Doumeki had stopped walking along with their guide. Novia was looking at him with a puzzled smile. "Is there something wrong?"

From the expression on Doumeki's face, it was clear the Keeper wanted to ask the same question.

Kimihiro shot him a quick look then smiled at Novia. "No. Everything's fine."

With a smile she led off again, talking about the establishment of the wing. "This wing was built with the generous donations of Lord Hoshino five years ago. It's the latest wing to be built in recent years-"

And that would explain what he was seeing - there were no protections at all in this part of the hospital. It was a distracted assessment. Kimihiro was still trying to locate the source of the plea that had been whispered into his ear. The roiling darkness filling the room was ignored as he focused on the cold chill that had preceded it.

**-lp us.**

Kimihiro stopped walking, closing his eyes to better sense the source.

**Help us.**

Warm breath brushed over his face and Kimihiro's eyes sprang open.

A young woman stood in front of him, her wet hair plastered over her face and shoulders. Dark liquid dripped from the end of her long tresses, marking the while tiles at her feet with a lopsided splash of black. **Help us.** Her dark eyes bored into him as her lips mouthed the words.

He recognised her. She was one of the first patients they had walked past in the ward.

**Help us.** A man was suddenly standing at his side, so close that Kimihiro could practically smell the blood sliding down the side of his face.

**Help us. **_**Help us!**_ A couple had appeared on his other side and they pressed closer, faces thin and desperate.

**Help us! ****_Help us!_** More and more people appeared until they were crowding around him, choking him with the smell of blood and the gathering dark haze that grew thicker and more cloying as more faces and reaching hands filled the space around him.

**helpushelpushelpushelpus-** It was hard to catch a breath. They were literally killing him with their desperate pleas and in self-defence he tried to block them out.

Or tried to. Kimihiro suddenly realized with horror that he couldn't close his sight.

~x~X~x~


	58. False Physician IV

ENTWINING FATES:

FALSE PHYSICIAN

IV

Kimihiro had stopped.

Doumeki had been paying close attention to him since they had first stepped into the ward. Becoming concerned as Kimihiro became more and more nervous, his eyes darting around him. And now he was stock still, the look in his eyes almost frantic as the calm facade he had been wearing began to crack and fall apart.

Doumeki stopped, turning to their guide. "We'll need a moment alone."

The young lady gave him a startled look, cut off in her running commentary. Her eyes moved to Kimihiro but Doumeki's body blocked her view. "Of course." Her smile wasn't quite adequate, marred by the confusion in her eyes. But she turned and walked out of the ward, footsteps echoing in a room of patients that might as well have been dead for all the awareness that they showed. She cast one look back at them both before closing the door behind her.

Doumeki turned to Kimihiro. His hands were pressed over his ears at this point, eyes closed and a pained expression carved over the taut white lines of his face. His breathing was ragged and he had started sweating again. Doumeki frowned and reached out, his hands resting over the hands that were pressed to either side of Kimihiro's head. Kimihiro's hands were taut knots of flesh and bone under Doumeki's but they suddenly relaxed at his touch. Doumeki became aware that Kimihiro's eyes were open again, aware and staring at him.

Doumeki pulled Kimihiro's hands down from his ears. "What is it?"

Kimihiro's eyes darted around, the lines of his face softening. His hands twitched in Doumeki's grip but he didn't pull them free. "The patients." The dark blue eyes flicked to one of the nearby beds. "It's as if they were already dead."

Doumeki followed his gaze, eyes narrowing as his eyes fell on a young woman lying motionless on the bed. Even though he had been warily alert since entering the Ward, Doumeki hadn't sensed anything. Not even a whisper of threat.

His gaze returned to Kimihiro's face. The lord was looking shaken, his eyes dark in his pale face. "Gaichu have been given free reign - none of these people will recover." But there was a spark of anger that was growing in his eyes. "This should never have happened." His fingers twitched in Doumeki's grip, an angry involuntary flex. "There are no protections whatsoever."

"Could it be the cause of what Lady Dexter felt?" Doumeki kept his eyes on Kimihiro's face, watching for minute changes of expression.

Kimihiro's eyes finally met his. "Gaichu are filth. Parasites that feed on pain and weakness. Infested as these patients are, they are as good as dead." His mouth had taken on an unhappy cast that, with the anger in his eyes, made him look suddenly cold. "But they're here because no one has prevented them - the older wings still have their protections." His lips thinned. "There must be something else."

Something else. Doumeki looked at the beds in the room and then back at Kimihiro. Something worse than what Kimihiro described. "Will you be alright?" Kimihiro wasn't looking well.

The dark blue eyes widened and a strange look flittered across Kimihiro's face. He blushed, an embarrassed look sliding across his face. "I'll be fine." Not looking at him, Kimihiro started to pull his hands free.

Doumeki tightened his grip, unwilling to let go. Had he been mistaken or had he seen that- "You didn't look fine." Even as he said it, he was trying to see Kimihiro's expression, trying to work out whether he'd seen that strange considering look or had imagined it. Excitement was lifting his heartbeat even as he kept his face blank and unthreatening.

Kimihiro still wouldn't met his gaze. "I wasn't expecting it-"

He was lying. Not that he wasn't expecting it, but that he would be fine. "You said that my presence protects you." Though not in as many words. "That I'm constantly warding."

His words had Kimihiro looking at him again, the colour fading from his face and a faint frown marking his face as he listened to Doumeki's words. His hands were no longer trying to pull free of Doumeki's grasp.

Doumeki brushed his thumbs over Kimihiro's knuckles. The lord's dark blue eyes slid down at the touch and his receding blush returned.

He _hadn't_ been imagining it. Kimihiro was reacting to his touch, not simply getting angry at the presumption of familiarity. Doumeki didn't know what had caused the change but he didn't really care - that it had happened was enough.

"Does it work better when I'm touching you?" One of his fingers slid down to settle at the side of Kimihiro's wrist.

Kimihiro had frozen at the touch. He was looking down at their hands with an expression of surprise and rising panic. Not unlike the expression he had worn before.

Doumeki reluctantly loosened his grip, letting Kimihiro's hands go. "If-"

The door at the end of the ward opened. "Lord Reed?" It was a hesitant enquiry. Novia was staring at them both curiously.

Kimihiro's eyes darted to the doorway. "A moment more, please." His voice was slightly strained.

The young woman blinked and nodded. "Of course." She stared at them with a slightly puzzled expression then left the room once more.

There was a moment of tense silence after she had gone. Doumeki was the first to break it. "If it gets worse you can hold my hand."

"Hold your hand?" Kimihiro had a wary look on his face as if he thought it was a joke.

"Unless you want to walk pressed up against me." Doumeki wouldn't mind that either. Even if it did widen Kimihiro's eyes in a small horrified look. "Do you have a better idea?"

Kimihiro didn't look pleased with the suggestion but he wasn't offering an alternative either.

The door opened again. "Lord Reed?" Novia had apparently decided that she had given them long enough.

Kimihiro darted a quick look at Doumeki. He took a step forward, away from the Doumeki, his face falling back into more composed lines. "Thank you for waiting."

The door opened fully and Novia stepped inside. "Shall I continue the tour, then?" She was avoiding any mention of what had occurred, the unusual request for privacy.

Kimihiro glanced around the room and nodded with a slightly strained smile. "That would be fine."

~x~X~x~

They were still there, pressing around him in a close choking crowd.

He had almost forgotten about them with Doumeki holding his hands and touching him like that. Kimihiro could feel the warmth in his face once more simply by thinking about it. What the hell was wrong with him? He'd determined that he was only willing to have a close friendship and a few touches had him thinking along entirely different lines.

He almost suspected Doumeki knew. Every time he felt he had some control over the situation, the Keeper did something to upset his carefully constructed balance. Kimihiro scowled. Doumeki was-

A cold touch to the shoulder made him flinch. They had left the ward and were heading down the corridor to another. And the small crowd of half-yurei had been following. Some vanishing as he left the boundary of their strength, others stubbornly clinging to him, hands reaching out as they drifted along in his wake. Determined despite Doumeki's presence at his side.

Now that he knew the inadvertent threat they posed, he was keeping his sight shut down to its most limited range. The desperate spirits seemed to realize that they were harming him and fallen back slightly. Keeping their pleas to silent mouthings and piercing stares, reminding him of their need with their ghostly forms and touches.

But now as they moved through the hospital, a multitude of newcomers were adding themselves to the throng, pressing closer. Soon Kimihiro found himself with the same problem that he had faced before. The new arrivals were appearing, more warped and desperate than the first he had encountered. They were more defined, without the faintly blurred lines of those who had come before. They were true yurei - the bodies of the spirits that now crowded around him were truly dead.

But it wasn't their numbers that alarmed Kimihiro the most. It was their appearance. Most of them were men and women but there were a few children. And despite the differences among them - the different coloured hair, the remarkable range of eye colours - they all bore the same look. Unnaturally thin limbs, gaunt faces and hollow eyes. Their staring eyes, all bearing the same, desperate, broken look, latched onto him with a strength that send a shock of fear through him. Almost all of them had been spiritually gifted in some way.

Some were angry. Kimihiro could feel the boiling rage and snapping anger as great gouts of black liquid surged up from the ground, splashing up in thick jetting arcs. They ripped through others of their number and cut through the forms of those around them. But the others barely reacted to the vicious rending of their forms. They followed silently, watching him with unwavering stares, multiplying as the seconds ticked past.

Kimihiro eyed them with a growing sense of dread. He was aware of Novia talking, but he wasn't paying attention to any of her words. He met her gaze every so often in a show of listening but his attention was for the spirits that stood overlapping her corporal form. The atmosphere was like the moments before a storm: tense and ready to break at any moment. Kimihiro wasn't sure what would happen when it did, but the growing lashes of darkness and the growing nausea he was experiencing suggesting it wouldn't be pretty.

He cast a glance at Doumeki. The Keeper wasn't looking at him but Kimihiro knew that Doumeki was aware of him. The Keeper looked relaxed, appearing unaware of the choking anger and despair that was filling the corridor around him. But his left hand hung by his side, conspicuously empty, a silent invitation.

There was a silent rush. The spirits, sensing they had lost his attention were suddenly pressing close once more. Choking him with the dark haze and lashing angry lines, drowning out Novia with their pleas which now were an overlapping series of that blocked out everything else. **Help us! Help us!**

He wanted to. But with their close presence, he couldn't sense anything beyond their anger and desperation. He wouldn't last too long at this rate, even with Doumeki at his side. And he couldn't help them if their cries for help incapacitated him.

**Help us-**

Kimihiro reached out and took Doumeki's hand.

Doumeki gave no sign of noticing but his fingers curled around Kimihiro's in a comforting clasp.

Kimihiro tried to convince himself that it was the sudden cessation of pleas and nausea that made him so aware of Doumeki's hand. That it wasn't the fact that it was Doumeki's hand he was holding onto.

He wasn't quite successful.

~x~X~x~

The feel of cool fingers slipping into his grip would have surprised Doumeki if he hadn't been expecting it. Ever since he had made the proposition, he had been watching Kimihiro struggle against it. A battle between holding up against the spirits that were pressing him and admitting his weakness, giving in to the lure of safety. Grim, strained stares against wary, irritated sidelong glances.

Doumeki found it hard not to smile as he took a firmer grip on Kimihiro's hand. He could sense Kimihiro's prickly discomfort at the move, the almost defensive glance that was directed his way. But Doumeki wasn't going to do anything that would have the lord pulling free, exposing himself once more. Not now that Kimihiro was relying on him for his safety. Not when he was staying in close physical contact without any protest.

His latent warding abilities were coming in handy for more than supernatural protection.

They entered another ward, Novia talking about how it had recently been renovated with the funds raised in the years before. She drew their attention to a plaque on the wall just inside the doorway. "Each donation is acknowledged by a plaque so that visitors may know who helped their loved ones receive the best care available." She cast a glance back at Kimihiro, ensuring that he had heard her words.

Kimihiro smiled and nodded but didn't seem particularly interested. Doumeki suspected that if he did make a donation, it would be anonymously. Kimihiro wasn't one to draw attention to his actions, especially if they were laudable.

Kimihiro's hand tightened in a fierce grip as they walked down the aisle that ran past the series of hospital beds. The patients were somewhat livelier - some actually sitting up and aware of their surroundings rather than lying still like corpses. Kimihiro didn't seem as stressed as he had been in the previous ward even though his fingers were firmly wrapped around Doumeki's hand.

Doumeki noticed that Kimihiro walked so that their joined hands were hidden from sight. That move alone bolstered the growing hope that he had been nursing. That Kimihiro was trying to hide it, showed that he was aware of how it would look - he was no longer acting as oblivious as he had been during the last few months.

Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro's face as he stared at an old man propped up against a mound of pillows. Perhaps it was time for him to take things another step further.

Eventually, as nothing disastrous happened, Kimihiro slowly relaxed, fingers loosening into a less-desperate grip. His gaze would still flicker around the room to track things that weren't there but he wasn't looking as strained as he had been before. Instead, a slight frown creased his brow as he scanned the room. It was not as strong as it had been in the previous ward, but anger was still a shadowed presence in his eyes. Kimihiro wasn't impressed by the running of the hospital.

Doumeki scanned the ward. The large hall was spotless. Beds were made with clean linen and the air was laced with the faint aftertaste of disinfectant. If he hadn't the barometer of Kimihiro's reactions, Doumeki would have said that the hospital was running as it should have been. But from what Kimihiro had said, there was something seriously wrong. He'd seen Kimihiro irritated and upset before but never had he been truly angry. Not like this.

"-this ward is dedicated to physical rehabilitation. Most of these patients will be due for release soon." Novia had reached the end of the ward and was opening the door to lead them out.

Kimihiro partially turned and cast a look back at the occupants of the ward. "I'm sure they'll be relieved to return to their families." There was something about the way he said it that suggested Kimihiro wasn't just referring to the state of their health.

Novia smiled at his words. But as soon as it had appeared, the expression faltered, smile falling into a look of shocked surprise.

Doumeki followed her gaze. Kimihiro's movement had given her a clear view of their arms and her gaze had fallen on their joined hands. Even as Doumeki watched, a look of disgust crossed her face before it was covered by a professional facade. She gave him a look that was distant, almost cold, barely covered by a false politeness. Clearly she was prepared to deal with them if it meant receiving a donation for the hospital.

Doumeki gave her back a bland stare. It was going to take a lot more than a hostile look to make him let go of Kimihiro's hand.

"I'd like to look at the private wards if that's possible." Kimihiro seemed oblivious. If it wasn't for the way he was looking everywhere else, Doumeki would have thought that he had forgotten they were holding hands.

Novia wore a slightly plastic smile. "Of course. This way." She started leading them down a short corridor that led to a wide set of double doors.

Kimihiro and Doumeki followed her. Doumeki glanced aside at Kimihiro. His face was set into taut white lines, his dark eyes flickering around them. While Doumeki's presence was enough to help block the effects of the spirits that had been harassing him, it was clear that they hadn't left. Kimihiro's uneasy glances revealed that the spirits were still stalking him.

Kimihiro's eyes flicked to him and their eyes met. Kimihiro's hand twitched in his and he looked away again, shoulders hunched slightly.

Doumeki wanted to see his face, to see what expression Kimihiro was wearing. He gave into impulse and shifted his hold slightly, tightening his grip, and leaned forward to look. Kimihiro scowled and glared at him, through the colour on his face.

Doumeki smiled and straightened. He should hold Kimihiro's hand more often.

Novia pushed open one of the large doors and held it open for them to pass through. She had been trying not to look at them but now her eyes fell on their joined hands again. Her expression slipped once more and she turned abruptly away.

This time Kimihiro caught the look. Doumeki thought for a moment that he might let go but Kimihiro simply tightened his hold, face growing politely blank. "Thank you."

Doumeki nodded to the woman, feeling slightly smug as he was pulled along behind by their joined hands.

They had entered another foyer, similar to the one which was used as the reception for the hospital. It was just as richly appointed, with a number of chairs clustered around a low table and a desk with a receptionist set along one wall. A short flight of stairs led down to a double set of glass doors that showed a neat path outside. It was a discrete, separate entrance for the noble visitors who wished to bypass the main entrance.

There was also a tracing of ward lines along the walls as there had been in the older parts of the building. Kimihiro's grasp loosened and his hand slipped free from Doumeki's. His face had relaxed from its strained lines, a fleeting look of relief crossing his face.

Doumeki flexed his empty hand. He couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed. But there was always the hope that they'd have to pass back the way they'd come.

Novia crossed the room and approached the uniformed woman seated behind the desk. Kimihiro was close behind her but Doumeki followed more slowly, scanning the room. It was more richly appointed than the main foyer. The objects in the room were of a finer quality. The tasteful vase on the desk alone was enough to feed a large family for a year.

"Sachiko, this is Lord Reed." Novia addressed the other woman, indicating Kimihiro. "He's considering a donation and would like to view the private wards."

The woman at the desk smiled warmly as her eyes swept over Kimihiro and Doumeki. "Lord Reed." She bowed her head in a small dip of recognition. Her gaze turned to Doumeki. "And your companion?"

"Arukawa, Masaru Arukawa." It was the name of one of his earliest ancestors before he took up the name Yamoto. From the strange strained look Kimihiro gave him, Doumeki could see that he was familiar with the reference.

But Sachiko didn't show any recognition. "Mr Arukawa." She gave another nod, genuine but not as deep as the first. "Welcome to the northern wing, gentlemen. Is there anyone you'd like to see?"

Kimihiro smiled faintly. "Lord Dexter if possible. I promised Lady Dexter I would visit."

Sachiko's eyes lit with recognition and her smile widened. "You have perfect timing, Lord Reed. Lady Dexter is visiting at the moment and you'll be able to see them both."

Kimihiro's eyes widened slightly and he darted a quick look at Doumeki. There was a slight hint of trepidation in his gaze. If Doumeki didn't know better, he would have thought that Kimihiro was afraid.

"I'm sure she'll be overjoyed to see you both. Not many people come to see Lord Dexter." Sachiko's smile had saddened slightly before widening as her eyes met Kimihiro's. She stood. "I'll take you myself." She turned to Novia. "Would you mind taking over for me?"

The young woman's smile became a bit more genuine. "Of course not."

Sachiko nodded and stepped out from behind the desk. "If you'd follow me gentlemen." She opened the door and ushered them through. A large staircase with a red runner and carved wooden wards in the balustrade led up to the second floor,.

"You mustn't mind Novia." Sachiko smiled slightly as she started up the stairs. "Her father was deathly ill several years back and was cured at the hospital. She takes the matter of donations seriously." Her smile quirked. "Too seriously sometimes."

"Novia was very helpful." Kimihiro offered tactfully.

Sachiko turned and smiled at him as she reached the landing and started up the next flight. "She's young." She glanced at Doumeki then back to Kimihiro. "Hopefully she'll grow more open-minded as she ages."

Doumeki glanced up at her thoughtfully. So she had seen them holding hands. Doumeki looked at Kimihiro but he seemed oblivious. He doubted that Kimihiro had grasped the full meaning of her words.

"Lady Dexter has been a regular visitor in recent months." Sachiko continued. "Not only to see Lord Dexter, though. A few weeks ago, she arranged for a delivery of plants for all the hospital wards." Her smile widened. "It's made the place brighter, I think." They reached the top of the stairs, a corridor filled with multiple doors reminiscent of a high-class inn.

She paused, gesturing to the left. "Lord Dexter is the third door on the left." She smiled at them both. "If you need anything, there's a bell in the room. Just ring and someone will come."

"Thank you." Kimihiro gave her a genuine smile.

An answering smile crossed her face. "My pleasure, Lord Reed." She nodded to Doumeki. "Mr Arukawa. Enjoy your visit."

~x~X~x~


	59. False Physician V

ENTWINING FATES:

FALSE PHYSICIAN

V

Kimihiro stood uncertainly before the door. Hesitating to knock.

Doumeki simply looked at him. He was expressionless as usual but there was something undeniably amused about him. It was almost as if he knew the predicament Kimihiro found himself in. But that was ridiculous.

Kimihiro reached out knocked on the door.

There was a slight pause. "Come in." It was undeniably Lady Dexter's voice.

Kimihiro tightened his grip on the door handle and opened the door.

In comparison to the wards where the commons were housed, the nobles had access to private rooms. Lord Dexter had been given a room facing north and the light from the large window on one wall was slanting through the room. Rich carpets and polished wood were illuminated and metallic threads on the embroidered coverlet spread over the bed glittered. Aside from the bed there were two side tables, each holding pots with hothouse flowers, and a large wardrobe on the other side of the room. An older man lay in the bed, partly propped up by pillows, his silvering hair a small halo on the pillows. A chair had been placed next to the bed and it was occupied by Lady Dexter.

She was wearing a modest, high-necked forest green dress with full skirts that flowed out of the chair to pool onto the floor around her feet in an elegant wave. A subtle series of vines in varying hues of lighter green ran over the fabric, highlighted with gold and silver thread. An ivory shawl threaded through with silver was wrapped around her shoulders, an echo of the silvering strands that were drawn up on the back of her head with a silver clasp. She was in the act of turning towards the door as it opened and her pale green eyes widened as she saw who was entering.

"Lady Dexter." Kimihiro gave her a respectful bow, still feeling somewhat embarrassed. And oddly nervous now that he was meeting the lady as himself. "I apologise for the interruption but after receiving your letter-"

Sudden realization bloomed in pale green eyes. "Kimihiro?" Lady Dexter rose from her chair, a smile lighting up her face. "What a welcome surprise! I was hoping that we might meet soon!" She was so excited, her words ran together in a cheerful flow. "I know that I extended an invitation for spring but it is so far away-"

Doumeki, who had closed the door behind them, now moved to stand at Kimihiro's side, drawing Lady Dexter's gaze. "And Your Highness!" She sank into a curtesy, face colouring slightly and suddenly looking flustered.

Kimihiro recalled her comments about Doumeki at the auction and decided to intervene. "You said you were concerned about the state of the Northern Ward."

Lady Dexter's eyes widened slightly. "And you came yourself?" A sudden concerned look crossed her face. "But should you have come? Your health-" She broke off, eyes worried.

Kimihiro sometimes forgot that he had a sickly reputation. "I'm fine." He gave her a reassuring smile.

"I'll see to Lord Watanuki if he starts feeling unwell." Doumeki met his irritated glance with an unyielding stare.

Lady Dexter smiled at that, as if there was something more to Doumeki's words. "Thank you, Your Highness."

Doumeki actually smiled in return. A slight curve of lips but a smile nonetheless.

Kimihiro felt a slight nervous feeling run through him. It was almost as if the two of them had been talking behind his back.

"I received the bulbs." Kimihiro tried to distract himself from the notion by changing the subject. "Thank you for the gift. I've had them set on the window sill of my study." Hikideshi had put some in his room, too, but Kimihiro wasn't sure how they'd do with the southern light.

Lady Dexter broke into a delighted smile. "I was hoping you'd enjoy them! It's terrible that your gardens have suffered. To think that you'll be missing the plum blossoms!" She was clearly distressed at the thought. But then her eyes suddenly brightened. "But perhaps you would come visit my garden instead? I have an extensive grove of plums and it is just glorious when they're in bloom." Her eyes turned to Doumeki. "And you, too, Your Highness! I would love to have both of you over for afternoon tea."

Doumeki nodded. "We'll both be there." He didn't even glance at Kimihiro, taking his agreement for granted.

Typical of Doumeki to accept without even bothering to consult him. Not that he didn't agree, but still- Kimihiro snuffed out his anger. It was hard to feel irritated with Doumeki when Lady Dexter was smiling at him. "I would be honoured."

Lady Dexter beamed. "It's a pity Tallis isn't awake to meet you both," the older woman chattered on. "We spent the morning reminiscing about when Harold and Janine were young." Lady Dexter's smile was fond, softening the lines of her face to make her appear years younger. "He tires more easily these days – he won't wake up until this afternoon." She turned an affectionate look at the ill man.

Kimihiro followed her gaze. The lord was asleep, the bed clothes tucked up neatly across his chest, arms resting lightly on the bedcover. One arm was resting on his chest and the other at his side, angled towards the chair in which Lady Dexter sat. It was likely that the lady had been holding her husband's hand before they had entered the room.

Kimihiro's attention turned to the lord's face. It was a strong face despite now looking too thin: broad cheekbones sat either side of a long thin nose and above a large jaw. He would have looked fierce if not for the thick grey eyebrows and the large moustache that was trimmed so neatly. The lines around his mouth and eyes suggested that he was more inclined to laughter than anger. He looked ill but not so desperately sick to warrant his recent lapses.

Kimihiro opened his sight a fraction, a slight twinge running through his right eye. He tried to focus it as he did, narrowing his sight to focus on the lord rather than simply opening his sight haphazardly as he had done before. Hikideshi had said it was possible to focus his sight in regard to certain objects and beings and he had been trying it on various objects in the Watanuki collection. His efforts had paid off; he was half-successful this time. While he hadn't been able to keep it as focused as he had hoped, what he saw now was more than he usually did when he had only minutely opened his sight.

It was a sight that was similar to what the physicians of supernatural ailments had used, focusing on the flow of energies within a person. Endowed with supernatural abilities or not, every person had a flowing current of energy within them and any illness, whether of the physical world or the second, was reflected by a disturbance within that flow. Lord Dexter had several distortions in the river of energies that flowed throughout his body. Some of them could be explained by his stroke and the extensive time he had been confined to his bed afterward, but there were a few - centring in his chest, his left arm and his left temple - that could not.

Kimihiro frowned. "Lady Dexter, pardon me for asking, but when did your husband fall ill?"

Lady Dexter's eyes widened slightly at the question. "Several years ago." Her brow furrowed slightly. "It was just before winter. We were walking through the garden - our gardener, Patrick, had just planted some roses and we were going to view them before the weather turned." Her faint smile faltered. "Tallis simply collapsed on the path."

Kimihiro was silent for a moment. "And Lord Dexter was brought to the Northern Ward." He phrased the next question carefully, not wanting to cause Lady Dexter any distress. "What was the diagnosis?"

Lady Dexter gave him a small smile. "At first it was thought that he would recover - Matthews actually started making the arrangements for his return home." She paused, eyes fixed on her husband. "But it soon became clear that he would need some more time." She took a hold of the hand lying on the covers, curling her fingers around her husband's hand.

An appearance of recovery before a relapse. Kimihiro had feared as much.

Doumeki was regarding him with that look he wore whenever he knew Kimihiro was hiding something. A measuring gaze with slightly narrowed eyes. Kimihiro met his stare for a moment and then turned back to Lord Dexter. He was hoping that what he suspected wasn't true. For Lord Dexter's sake as much for what it would mean.

"Lady Dexter, would you allow me to examine your husband?" Kimihiro felt curiously tense as he asked the question. He wasn't used to offering his services to people he already knew. Most of those who came to seek his aid were strangers and their reaction to seeing evidence of his power didn't really concern him. But it was different with Lady Dexter. He found that the tenuous friendship he had with the older woman wasn't something that he wanted to lose.

Her pale green eyes flickered up to him in surprise. "Are you skilled in medicine?"

Kimihiro's nervousness increased. "Not exactly." He struggled with an explanation that didn't sound crazy. "I'm able to see when someone is ill and sometimes identify the cause." Usually when it was supernatural in nature.

She blinked and then comprehension lit her face. A spark of curiosity lit within her eyes but she simply smiled. "Of course you can. Go ahead." She gave him a gentle, reproving smile. "And it's Elizabeth."

"Elizabeth." It felt somewhat awkward on his tongue but Kimihiro found himself smiling.

"Do you need some privacy?" Lady De- No, Elizabeth, was still looking at him, curiosity coming to the fore. She was gathering her shawl more firmly around her, her free hand on the arm of the chair she sat in. It looked like she was getting ready to stand.

"No. You can stay where you are." He paused, trying to explain it a bit. "I'll simply be looking. You're not going to distract me."

He turned his attention to her husband and concentrated on trying to find out why Lord Dexter was still sick when he should have been well enough to return to his home years ago.

~x~X~x~

"Is it usually like this?" The older woman's voice was hushed but Doumeki could hear her words clearly. His gaze slid to her face. Lady Dexter didn't seem worried in the slightest - she wore an expression of curiosity as she watched Kimihiro.

Kimihiro was currently standing on the other side of the bed, face set in intent lines, eyes dark as he stared down at the ill man. Even as Doumeki watched one pale hand lowered to lightly rest on Lord Dexter's chest. Kimihiro's eyes flickered - it wasn't much but Doumeki was used to watching for his minute reactions and knew that Kimihiro had found something.

"Usually." When he wasn't chasing after things that no one else could see. But this was different. Doumeki couldn't say why, but what Kimihiro was doing now wasn't quite like what he had done on previous occassions.

Kimihiro's hand lifted and he shifted his gaze to the arm that rested on Lord Dexter's chest. A faint line appeared between his eyebrows.

Both of them watched silently as Kimihiro simply stared for several long moments. But soon Doumeki became aware of Lady Dexter's eyes on him. He glanced sideways.

"It doesn't seem to be that fearsome a thing." She glanced at Kimihiro who wasn't paying them any attention. "To practise the old ways." The older woman had a slightly hesitant look on her face. "The court-"

Doumeki knew what she was thinking. "Most people have forgotten." Like he had. "And others see it as a threat."

Lady Dexter frowned. She didn't protest the assessment. Doumeki knew that she must have heard most of the rumours circulating through court. She was intelligent enough to know how they were being used by people for their own advantage.

"People tend to fear what they don't understand." Kimihiro murmured softly, causing them both to turn back towards him. He was still staring at Lord Dexter's chest, expression intent. "And with the changes that have come in recent years, it's hard for some people to understand the way things once were." His voice was soft, almost contemplative. "The present is always moving away from the past and as the distance widens, people think themselves different from their ancestors. More cultured. More developed." A faint smile twitched his mouth, a barely discernable show of amusement. "In reality, they are much the same. The basic needs and urges are there and only the way in which they are met change."

Doumeki stared. He had never heard Kimihiro talking like this before. It was somewhat startling, like a new unseen facet of his personality had surfaced. But they had never really discussed their views on the changes that were occurring in their world. They had focused on threats to counter rather than the nature of what they were trying to save. Doumeki frowned. But perhaps they should.

Lady Dexter was staring at Kimihiro as well, a slightly surprised expression on her face.

Kimihiro seemed unaware of their surprise. One hand moved to rest on the covers pulled up over Lord Dexter's chest. A blank look smoothed his face, his eyes becoming unfocused. After a few moments, his right eye twitched and then he lifted his hand again. He glanced up and gave Lady Dexter a faint smile. "The ways of a practitioner are just an older method. Neither good nor bad in themselves." His eyes narrowed slightly. "That depends on what they are used for."

Lady Dexter was silent for a moment. "I think more people need to hear that." Her voice was quiet, her face serious. "No one talks about how things used to be." Her face grew pensive. "Everyone seems so caught up in the modernization process, making the next step of progress. No one seems to be questioning if we should." She moved one hand in a small half-hearted wave. "I'm not against advances but I don't believe that were should be erasing the past to accommodate them." She fixed Kimihiro with a thoughtful gaze. "Perhaps someone simply needs to start raising it as a serious issue. Someone who is qualified to speak about it."

Kimihiro laughed softly. "I doubt that many people would to hear what I had to say." His smile was regretful. "Just my presence is a problem."

Lady Dexter blinked and suddenly cast him an anxious glance.

Kimihiro caught the look and smiled faintly. "I'm here as Lord Reed today."

She frowned, fingers idly tracing the back of the hand she clasped. "You shouldn't have to hide who you are." The very idea seemed to bother her greatly.

Doumeki agreed. He didn't care if Kimihiro was seen with him. There would likely be complications but that was to be expected. Nothing with Kimihiro was simple. It was what made him so interesting.

Kimihiro appeared touched by her words. "It's easier not to draw attention. My presence might provoke certain people." He wasn't exactly resigned, but he didn't appear angry either.

Doumeki found that he was. The people Kimihiro referred to were riddled throughout the court and seemed intent on infecting others with their viewpoint. He had made several moves to suppress certain rumours but with limited success. If anything, they had taken a turn for the worse in recent weeks and Doumeki was beginning to suspect that Lord Halstead was not the only one stirring them up.

Several vicious personal anecdotes had surfaced in the last week alone. The venom behind them sounded more personal than previous rumours. Those that had come before had focused on Kimihiro's apparent disturbing lapses in public while those that circulated now hinted of darker things. Of murder, patricide and darker dealings of a more sinister nature.

Doumeki had wondered if it had simply been coincidence they had surfaced just before his mother's letter. But it had been a thought he had entertained only briefly - ultimately he knew that it was not his mother's doing. She was not a subtle woman. She would make her displeasure known directly not in sly snipping carried out by other people.

But that only begged the question of who hated Kimihiro enough to start the new rumours. Doumeki had set Katsurou on the task but there had been no word on the matter as yet.

When the origin did become clear, though, Doumeki intended to deal with the person responsible personally. Though Kimihiro had said nothing, Doumeki knew that he was aware of what was being said about him and would have been hurt by it. Despite his political views and isolation, Kimihiro still considered himself one of the nobility.

He became aware that Kimihiro was staring at him, an almost worried expression on his face. It was almost as if he knew what Doumeki was thinking. But the expression soon cleared in favour of a gentle smile directed at Lady Dexter. "It's just the way things are." He turned his attention back to Lord Dexter. This time staring at the sick man's face.

"Even so." Lady Dexter was still upset. "It shouldn't-"

"Elizabeth." Kimihiro sounded distracted, which probably accounted for how comfortably the name rolled off his tongue. If he hadn't been, the intimate address would probably be more awkward. "Has Lord Dexter had a haircut recently?" Kimihiro was peering down at the lord's face.

The lady seemed perplexed by the question. "A few weeks ago, I think. Is it important?"

"Not necessarily." Kimihiro blinked a few times and finally turned from his examination of the sick man. He stared down at Lord Dexter for a moment then walked back around the bed to stand in front of Lady Dexter's chair.

Doumeki noticed he was slightly unsteady as he walked and set a hand under his elbow to steady him. Aside from a distracted blue stare and a fleeting frown, Kimihiro refrained from commenting.

Lady Dexter caught the exchange but her gaze fixed on Kimihiro's face. "What did you find?" Her hand had tightened on her husband's.

"Surprisingly little." Kimihiro was blunt. "From what I can see, there's no reason why Lord Dexter can't return to his estates. There will be some weakness from the initial stroke but it should be minimal." He glanced over at the lord. "There's no reason why your husband can't check out within a week."

Lady Dexter blinked. Her pale green eyes flickered to the sleeping man and then back to Kimihiro. "But-" She stopped, obviously confused. "What about-"

"The time he's spent here has healed most of the damage from the stroke. At the moment he seemed to have a mild case of influenza. It's probably why he's been so weak recently. He's fighting off the infection."

Growing hope warred with the caution born of previous disappointment as her pale eyes searched his face. "Then I can finally take him home?" Her voice wavered slightly on the last word.

"Elizabeth." Kimihiro took Lady Dexter's free hand in both of his. "He will get better if you take him home. I swear it."

Lady Dexter made a sound that resembled a choked off sob. She blinked her eyes rapidly and pulled free of Kimihiro's grip to search her pocket. "I'm sorry-" Her voice was uneven. "I can never find a handkerchief when I need one." She let out a watery little laugh.

Kimihiro's hand was already in his pocket and he handed her a neatly folded square of white cloth.

She accepted it and gave him a grateful smile. "Thank you." She dabbed at her eyes, head bent to hide the evidence of tears. "It's just such a relief-"

Kimihiro gave her an understanding smile.

"You'll have to introduce your husband when we visit." Doumeki wasn't very good with comforting words – Kimihiro tended to snap at him when he said something he thought appropriate - but he hoped the prospect might cheer her.

Lady Dexter sent him a grateful smile. "He would like that." She had regained her composure and there was a hopeful look in her eyes as she glanced at her husband. She held out the handkerchief to Kimihiro. "Thank you." Her voice had softened - it was more than the lend of the handkerchief that she was thanking him for.

"Keep it." Kimihiro smiled.

She smiled in return, folding the fabric between her fingers. "I was planing to go to a restaurant nearby for lunch. Would you be able to join me?"

Doumeki expected Kimihiro to accept but was surprised when Kimihiro smiled and shook his head.

"I'm afraid I have more business here at the Northern Ward." His voice was pleasant but Doumeki knew that his business was anything but. His voice grew quiet. "I want to see how Lady Halstead is doing."

Lady Dexter had looked slightly disappointed at the gentle refusal but it changed to a look of concern at Kimihiro's last words. "I've heard that she hasn't had many visitors." Lady Dexter looked slightly uncomfortable. "I haven't been introduced and it would-"

A distressed look flashed across Kimihiro's face briefly before disappearing. "I'll visit her."

"I won't keep you then." Lady Dexter stood and pulled the cord that hung down next to her husband's bed. "From what I hear, Lady Halstead would appreciate the gesture." A worried look crossed her face. "Perhaps-"

There was a knock at the door.

"Just a moment, please." Lady Dexter turned from the door to Kimihiro. She reached forward and grasped his hands. "Thank you, Kimihiro."

Kimihiro looked touched. "I look forward to seeing you again."

"As do I." She smiled brightly. Her eyes turned to Doumeki. "Thank you for coming, Your Highness."

He nodded, knowing her thanks was for accompanying Kimihiro as much as coming to see her. Kimihiro had managed to gain a determined supporter in the older woman.

There were bows and curtesies all round and then Doumeki and Kimihiro exited the room, Lady Dexter smiling at them and giving one last wave before the door shut.

A nurse was waiting for them outside. Her pale eyes lit with a smile at the sight of them. "You rang for assistance?"

"I'd like to visit Lady Halstead," Kimihiro started.

"-and Lady Amita." Doumeki caught Kimihiro's surprised look but didn't explain further.

The woman nodded and gave them directions. "Would you like me to take you?"

Kimihiro glanced at Doumeki then shook his head. "We'll be fine thank you."

With one last smile, the nurse walked a few steps down the corridor and disappeared into one of the private rooms. She must have been attending one of the patients nearby.

They started heading down the corridor she had indicated. It led further away from the staircase they had climbed and deeper into the ward. Slanting light from the windows illuminated the red runner underfoot and the wainscotting on the wall.

Doumeki speared Kimihiro with a searching stare. "What did you do?"

Kimihiro gave him a sidelong glance. "Energy flows through the body. When something is wrong, sometimes the lines are blocked. I simply corrected a few flows. Any competent practitioner could do it - it doesn't require much skill."

Doumeki was familiar with the concept. He was silent for a moment. "But it wasn't a simple cold."

"No." Kimihiro frowned. "It may have started as one but it isn't now." His hand tightened around his cane. "But I hope to resolve that by the end of the day. In any case, having Lord Dexter returned to his home will only improve his condition." Kimihiro glanced up at a faded ward line on one wall. "He shouldn't have been kept here as long as he was."

Doumeki glanced at him sharply. "Are you suggesting it was done purposefully?"

Kimihiro frowned. "I don't think that was the intent. It's more likely that the hospital staff were erring on the cautious side. If there are no practitioners among them, they probably didn't know any better."

Doumeki was silent for a few moments, turning the situation over in his mind. "When was the last known practitioner working here?"

Kimihiro's eyebrows rose at the question then lowered as he thought about it. "There were a few about ten years ago. They weren't recognised as practitioners of course - it was their medical skills that allowed them to work here." His brow furrowed. "But now...I don't know."

They had reached Lady Halstead's room. Doumeki stopped. "I'll come and get you." He didn't want Kimihiro wandering the corridors by himself.

There wasn't a flash of irritation. Not even a glare. Kimihiro merely nodded. Apparently, his experience in the other wing had unnerved him. He turned to enter the room. "Lady Amita-" Kimihiro paused, hand on the handle. "You'll convey my best wishes?"

"I will." He stared at Kimihiro's back, wondering what sort of expression he was wearing.

But Kimihiro only nodded and quietly entered the room. Not once turning around.

Doumeki waited a moment then started back down the hall towards Lady Amita's room. Intent on finding the answers that his grandfather had hinted were waiting for him.

~x~X~x~


	60. False Physician VI

ENTWINING FATES:

FALSE PHYSICIAN

VI

Lady Amita looked old beyond her years. When Doumeki had last seen her months ago, she had appeared to be in her fifties. But now her hair had gone completely grey and she had lost so much weight that her body looked like it was collapsing in on itself. Eyes sinking back into her skull and the flesh falling back on her limbs to outline the frail bones beneath. She now looked like she was eighty.

But one thing had changed for the better. None of the discomfort Doumeki had felt in her presence on previous occasions was present. He no longer felt disquiet in her presence or had the urge to escape her company. She was the woman he remembered in his youth, changed only by time.

"You look just like Haruka when he was young." The voice was soft, barely any strength behind the breath that had been shaped to create words. Lady Amita's eyes opened and though her body had changed they were still the same. Warm brown and full of cheerful humour. It was like she had been when he was young. "More serious." A faint smile twitched her lips. "Haruka was always smiling. Even that time his father caught us behind the main shrine."

Doumeki blinked. The image of his grandfather as a lustful young man had never occurred to him.

Lady Amita's smile widened as she saw his face, pulling her wasted face into a shadow of the cheerful visage that had been her habit. "I should have married him. But I was his friend first. And when he fell for your grandmother I had to help him." She took in a shallow breath that was a strengthless laugh, eyes sliding shut. "Not that he needed much."

She was quiet for a long time, the faint smile still a trace on her lips as her quiet breaths filled the room. Doumeki watched her, a curiously painful feeling filling him as he recalled the lively woman who had made him origami cranes when he was younger. She had sent gifts every year until the death of his grandfather. It was only then that she had fallen away. He had let the contact slip, occupied by other things, but now he could see that was when things had started to go wrong. He wished that he had taken the time to see her sooner.

"I don't have long left." She said suddenly, eyes closed. "Haruka asked me to look after things when he was gone." Her eyes slowly opened, filled with pain. "But I was unable to do so." Her breath hitched as if the memory of failure was physically painful.

Doumeki reached out and carefully picked up the pale wrinkled hand that rested on the bed covers over her thin chest. It felt incredibly fragile to his touch, like washi stretched over slender twigs. Her fingers were cold and he wrapped her hand with both of his own.

The slender fingers twitched in his grasp. "I was meant to look out for you both." Her eyes were bright, on the verge of tears.

With what he had learnt in the last few months he now knew who she was referring to. "Kimihiro."

She nodded, a faint movement that barely shifted the fall of silver hair on the pillow beneath her head. "Not many of us are left." Her fingers trembled slightly in his hold like a wounded bird. "After the death of Kimihiro's parents some of them had broken through. Haruka arrived too late and some of them had already fled. He was able to save Kimihiro but the poor boy had already been injured." Her breath came out in a slow shuddering breath. "With the Watanuki line nearly extinguished, they began to seek out others."

Her eyes were closed again, as if she was mustering all her strength for her words. "By the time the wards had been reinforced, there had been several deaths."

Doumeki was quiet, letting the older woman rest in the contemplation of memories that were playing through her head. In some ways he had learnt more in the last five minutes than he had in all the months with Kimihiro and Haruka's cryptic advisements.

"It seemed pointless in retrospect. A forceful drive to penetrate the wards. Many had died but the ultimately the wards of the city still held." Her voice was soft as she continued, eyes closed. Her voice took on a chill tone. "Some thought the matter had been dealt with, that the threat had been avoided." She obviously believed that such thoughts were madness. "But not Haruka." A faint smile curved her lips. "And he was right, of course. He was always right."

"It was a slow slide after that. Things started to change. Cursed objects long lost began to appear. Accidents that should have been prevented were common." Her eyes opened, suddenly spearing the ceiling with a sharp look. "Almost as if someone was pulling stones from a wall and dislodging other blocks."

Her eyes turned to Doumeki, still with that fierce expression. "Haruka thought it was possible that something had been enclosed within the wards." Her lips drew thin. "There were some that were unaccounted for. Him for one." Her eyes darkened. "The one who had ripped Kimihiro's sight open."

She continued, unaware of the frozen stillness that had overtaken the young man who sat at her bedside. "It was clear that something was moving through the city. Whether a person or something else wasn't clear. Haruka was doing what he could to track the source before he died." She sighed, an exasperated sound. "The stubborn fool wouldn't tell me anything. Just gave me one of those smiles and asked me to take care of things."

Her thin fingers suddenly clenched tightly over his, bringing to bear a strength that he though they had lost. "Beware gifts, Shizuka." Her eyes were bright, her thin body partially lifting from the bed. "Our enemy knows our weaknesses and seeks to use them against us."

The gold brooch. "Who was it from?"

Her grip loosened and her body sank back onto the bed once more. "I never knew." Her eyes turned to met his. "But even when my sight was twisted I saw things. What Haruka did can't hold forever."

"What he did?" Doumeki tried to keep the urgency out of his voice. He was close to the answers he had been searching for.

Lady Amita's eyes slid closed. "Holding them back." Doumeki waited for a moment but it soon became clear that she wasn't saying anything more.

He glanced around the room. The richly-appointed room had no life. It felt like a hotel room rather than a home; it didn't feel lived in, lacking any of the homely touches that Lord Dexter's room had. An image the covered dishes set on the side able only reinforced.

Doumeki stared down at Lady Amita. She looked worse with her eyes closed. Doumeki frowned. He suspected that her stay in the Ward would not last much longer.

The fingers in his grip moved faintly. "Do you still have the cranes I sent you?" She asked without opening her eyes.

"I still have them." He had kept them all in a worn wooden box. He never knew why, but he'd always hesitated when it came to disposing of them.

"Keep them close." Her breathing was getting softer, her voice fading. "They hold what power I could spare at the time. It isn't much but it might be enough." Her fingers were lax in his grip. "Keep close to Kimihiro." A faint quirk of her mouth. "But don't let your mother know about it."

"It's too late for that." The letter he had received made that clear. But he didn't intend to let his mother's displeasure govern his life.

Lady Amita must have heard something in his voice for her smile became a real one for a moment. "Good for you, Shizuka. I knew you'd never let her hold you for long." The smile faded, her voice becoming more serious. "But be careful. She blames Kimihiro."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed. "For what?"

Lady Amita's eyes were tired. "Everything." Her eyes slid shut. "I'd like to see you again."

"You will." Doumeki's hands gently tightened around her frail one. There was a soft pressure in response. "And I'll bring Kimihiro."

"I'd like that." Her voice was fading once more as she slipped towards sleep. "I've caused him so much trouble."

"He doesn't see it that way." And probably never had. It had been Lady Amita who had first drawn Kimihiro out of his mansion. Doumeki suspected he had been looking out for her all along.

Lady Amita's eyes flicked open, coming suddenly into focus as she rallied her strength. "There is...something." A frown wrinkled her brow. "Something that shouldn't be here." The effort was too much and she sank back, gone limp.

Doumeki gently set her hand back on the covers before rising. Her words had sent a chill through him as she spoke. He wouldn't feel better until he Kimihiro back in sight once more.

~x~X~x~

Lady Halstead had been given a private room with pale cream walls and light décor that had been chosen in an attempt to brighten it. But with the pale occupant lying still in the bed, the effort was smothered in a still, hushed heaviness that filled the air. The quiet that fell when one was in the presence of the severely ill.

Kimihiro sat in the chair provided next to the bed. His eyes ran over the room. After the example of Lord Dexter's room, it was comparatively bare. Aside from the décor, there were few personal items to show the room was inhabited: a hairbrush on the dresser, a book on the side table. It was as if the lady had been ripped from her home and abruptly thrust into her surroundings without her belongings. Kimihiro wondered if the state of the room reflected the way Lord Halstead had relieved himself of his wife.

His eyes lowered. Lady Halstead's courageous actions had done more than rob her of her home. Her attempt to remove the cursed painting from her husband's possession had destroyed her health. Just the sight of her still form was enough to tell him that it was unlikely she would leave the Northern Ward again.

Lady Halstead looked even worse than she had when she had come to seek his services. She had lost a vast amount of weight, making her gaunt rather than simply too thin. The lank hair that trailed loose over her thin shoulders looked brittle, like fraying strands of wire. Her eyes were closed as she sat propped up against a mound of pillows, a dark shawl wrapped around her shoulders. Without their dark lustre, her face was pale and drawn, the lines and shadows starkly obvious.

Kimihiro knew as soon as he saw her that he couldn't help her like he had Lord Dexter. The painting had done damage on several levels and anything he did would likely only make the situation worse. She needed a physician who was able to treat spiritual wounds as well as the physical.

"Thank you for the flowers." Her voice was soft but despite her failing health it still held the strength that had propelled her to challenge her husband and his cursed painting's wrath. Lady Halstead's eyes opened to fix on him. They were tired but the personality that lit them was undiminished. "They were lovely."

It had been the least he could do. He couldn't visit - not with the condition he had been in - and by the time he was well, the rumours connecting him with her illness had already started. It was wiser not to cause any more damage to her by appearing at her sickbed. He had sent them anonymously for that very reason, through Ryuota. Yasu's second son was well-established in the city with no traceable link with Lord Watanuki. Kimihiro was surprised that she had been able to tell they were from him.

Lady Halstead noticed his surprise. She smiled, a faint twitch of lips. "They were the only ones I received aside from a posy of wildflowers." Her smile widened a fraction. "They were from Thomas. I was teaching him to write before and his atrocious spelling is unmistakable."

Kimihiro's gaze fell on the empty vase that sat on the table.

Lady Halstead followed his gaze. "It's not fashionable to be ill, especially when the circumstances are so suspicious." Her voice held no resentment, no anger at the shunning she had received. No disappointment. Only simple acceptance.

Kimihiro remained silent. He had experienced the same after his fit at Lady Kashi's celebration. Not even the lady herself had enquired after the health of her guest in the following days. If it hadn't been for Haruka, he would have been cut off entirely.

But not even Lord Halstead had cared to send flowers to his ill wife.

Lady Halstead smiled at him, the knowledge of their shared circumstances in her eyes. "I have no real friends now. When we were in danger of loosing everything, I realized how fickle those I had thought of as friends could be. Debt is like the plague - people avoid you as if they fear it is catching." Her eyes closed. "I couldn't be bothered to keep up the pretences after that. It had all been a sham and I couldn't bear to don a false smile and pretend like the rest of them."

Her fingers worked the plain ring on her left hand. It was loose and easily turned on her finger. "And after he received the painting Richard became less and less like the man I had once known. Everything was about money. Profit, riches, connections." Her pale lips thinned, the remaining colour leeching to strained white. "That painting destroyed him as surely as it did the people it killed."

She coughed, a thin hand rising to cover her mouth. But it didn't end at one. Her thin body convulsed as a coughing fit overtook her. Kimihiro was instantly on his feet, one arm around her as he helped her to sit up more fully. It was several moments before the coughing stopped. She was limp in his arms as Kimihiro resettled her to sit propped up on the piled pillows.

"I didn't get the chance to thank you for what you did." She took a deep breath, eyes closed. Her hand rose and covered the hand that still rested on her shoulder. "Thank you. For everything."

Kimihiro stared at the thin hand that covered his, chest tightening. "You're wrong." Her eyes opened, confusion marking her face. Kimihiro met her gaze firmly. "You aren't without friends, Beryl."

A vulnerable, almost lost look crossed her face. For a moment it looked like she was going to cry. But then she laughed. A laugh that hiccuped slightly but was a laugh nonetheless. "Thank you." It was said with more warmth than it had been before. Her hand squeezed his then slid back down into her lap.

Kimihiro sat back in his chair. "Thomas sends his well wishes." He felt it was better to change the subject and talk of lighter matters. He reached into the inner pocket of his jacket and removed a carefully folded piece of paper. "He asked me to give this to you." The boy had been one of the first among his tenants to take up the offer of coming to see him and had given Kimihiro the letter to give to his former lady. Kimihiro had taken it with him today in the hopes that he might have time to visit her.

Lady Halstead accepted it with a full smile. She didn't open it but looked at it carefully, slowly turning it over in her hands. "He's well?"

"He's settled among the tenants on my estate. One of the young women, Miku, has taken him into her home. Her father is my driver and Thomas helps to take care of the horses."

"He would like that." Lady Halstead sounded pleased, eyes warm as she stared at the letter. "Thomas has always loved horses."

Kimihiro smiled at her words. He had hoped to find the boy a place and he had fallen into life on the estate seamlessly. Thomas had taken to his new tasks with enthusiasm and even lost the flinching wariness that had been his wont before he had come to the estate. If it hadn't been for the worry he still held for Lady Halstead, Kimihiro would have said that he was content.

They conversed more about Thomas and then moved onto more general subjects. Or rather Kimihiro spoke while Beryl listened. Lady Halstead brightened as she listened to the descriptions of the world outside, the edited stories he told of the people who came to visit him. Kimihiro wasn't used to being the one talking - the only subjects he discussed extensively were supernatural in nature and that was usually with Doumeki who was no great conversationalist. The Keeper would never say two words when one would do. Kimihiro reflected, somewhat rudely, that silence was the matter of course when food was on the table. It was Lady Dexter's letters that gave him the topics to talk to Lady Halstead now.

He reflected that it would be good for both of them if they met. Elizabeth's bubbly, gregarious nature would provide a welcome distraction and she would likely take the younger lady into her care. Lady Dexter was apt at spotting people in need. Her sweet concern was genuine for anyone she met.

Only a short time had passed before Kimihiro, who had been paying close attention to her, saw when Beryl's strength began to flag. Her eyes were sagging and Kimihiro knew it was time to leave and let her rest. "I should take my leave. But may I call on you at a later date?"

The smile he received was faint but genuine. "I'll be here." There was a twist of wry humour in her words.

Kimihiro's mouth twitched. He was beginning to see how she had been able to deal with the dark situation she had endured. The lady had a healthy sense of humour. One he hoped would help her pull through her current illness.

Kimihiro stood to leave only to froze, half-standing. With Lady Halstead facing him the way she was, he could now see what had been hidden from him before. One dark lock cut shorter than the others. A recent cut that showed clearly at her left temple.

"Kimihiro?" Beryl's tired dark eyes were fixed on him with concern.

He realized that he had been staring fixedly and immediately shifted his gaze to her face. "Have you cut your hair recently?" He was hoping that it was the case. That it was simply coincidence.

That something had occurred to explain away the missing hair.

She blinked. "Cut it?" One of her hands involuntarily rose to her head.

Kimihiro gestured to her temple. "A lock has been cut off. Was it recently?"

Beryl's hand found the short lock, fingers tracing the short length of hairs down to their abrupt termination. "No." She sounded puzzled. "I don't know when it happened." And then she spoke words that send a flush of ice along Kimihiro's veins. "One of the staff must have cut it. It wasn't like that before."

Kimihiro's hands clenched as rage vied with icy dread. It couldn't be coincidence. Not when there had been two patients who had been admitted to the Northern Ward to be healed only to sink into further deterioration. Both of them missing hair. That thread of life that was unique to each person and could be used against them.

This went beyond negligence. It had been a deliberate act - a series of them that had been going on for years if he wasn't mistaken. He wished he was, but what he had seen, what he had sensed, suggested he wasn't. It had been less obvious with Lord Dexter, who had constant visits from his wife. But for Lady Halstead, who was virtually alone and dependant on the hospital for her care, it had been more carelessly done.

The trailing spirits that had implored him for aid were now a more sinister thing, a trail of destruction that riddled the wards of the hospital. The Northern Ward had become the house of something foul, a place of healing turned into someone's private hunting ground. Someone who had been unchecked for years. Just thinking about their motivation made him sick with anger.

"It's alright." Beryl had sensed his upset but misinterpreted it. "It will grow back." She smiled. "It probably got tangled and a knot had to be cut out."

Kimihiro managed a slight smile that felt more like an angry twitch. He didn't want to alarm her. One way or another he would deal with the person and undo what they had done. He wasn't going to leave this to Lord Durham - the Northern Keeper had let things go this far and Kimihiro wasn't going to trust him to deal with them any more.

Kimihiro's thoughts grew cold, limed with a frosty anger. He hadn't dealt with those who preyed on the rest of the populace, the living who chose to use the supernatural abilities they had for their own purposes with no regard for the harm they wrecked on others. That task had mostly fallen to Haruka, who had legitimate authority in meting out punishments and the power to ensure those responsible were sealed or stripped of their power. But in this case, Kimihiro was unwilling to cede the responsibility to Doumeki as he should. The Keeper didn't have to skills to deal with it and Kimihiro could.

Kimihiro had never done it before but he knew how to seal someone. It would likely tax his power to its limits but he was determined. Kimihiro wanted to take care of this matter himself.

He straightened. "I'm sure that's the case." His voice was calm, belying the powerful anger that filled him like a flood ready to spill free. He kept a tight rein on it, knowing that it was energy he would need later. Anger was a powerful emotion that could bolster any use of power.

"I'll call on you next week." His smile was more genuine as he saw how his words cheered the ailing woman. "And I'll bring Thomas with me."

One of her hands reached out to take one of his. "Thank you. I would like that." The gratitude in her voice made his anger rise again. It was such a simple thing but she acted as if it was a great favour.

"Until then." Kimihiro gently squeezed her hand. "I hope to see you better when I return." He let go and quietly crossed the room. Lady Halstead's eyes had already closed when Kimihiro shut the door quietly behind him.

He stood for a moment in the hall, taking several deep breaths to calm his anger. Now to find Doumeki-

A flash of white further down the corridor caught his attention. A nurse.

"Excuse me?"

The woman stopped and turned to stare back at him.

Kimihiro started toward her, closing the distance between them. "Would you be able to show me to Lady Amita's room?" He needed to collect Doumeki and start to trace down the person responsible. He was going to have to open his sight fully and he wasn't going to chance it without Doumeki with him. Not with what he had already seen.

The nurse had been staring at him, her eyes flicking over him with a quick assessing gaze. She nodded and started down the corridor once more, taking his presence for granted. Kimihiro followed, his former anger dampening under the impression that he was an inconvenient intrusion. The nurse had a hurried competent air about her. While there was someone who was actively harming the patients in the Northern Ward, she reminded him that they were in the minority. Most of the people who worked in the hospital tended to their patients to the best of their abilities. It was simply that they were unaware of the non-physical threats that threatened their charges.

It was those who had the knowledge of the second world, whose task it was to ensure the Northern Ward was secure, that were to blame.

The nurse's strides were quick and Kimihiro had to break into an undignified trot, cane clutched tightly in one hand, in an effort to catch up. She cast a glance over her shoulder and, becoming aware of his difficulty, slowed her pace somewhat.

Kimihiro fell into more comfortable fast strides, no longer having to jog. Within a few moments he had gained ground and was able to catch up to her. By the time she had turned the corner into another corridor, he was almost at her side.

A chill ran through him, icing the marrow of his bones.

_At times when I have visited, I feel a chill as if death itself passed me._

Kimihiro slowed, trying to locate the source of the sensation. It continued, a painful freeze of flesh and bone that made his joints and teeth ache. There was nothing in the corridor aside from the slanting light from the windows which lit the rich runner underfoot, the wooden wainscoting and the ward lines crawling unbroken along the walls. There was nothing else, nothing-

A greater chill ran through him, born of realization.

Nothing except for the nurse in the corridor ahead of him.

Kimihiro stopped walking. His hand slowly slid to his pocket, reaching for the pocket watch resting inside.

The nurse had stopped as well, slowly turning to face him. Her eyes were cold as they fixed on him. Angry and resentful, chill disks that glittered in the stern planes of her face. Lit by the light streaming through the windows, she was all pale flesh and shadows. An uncertain presence that was sending warning chills down Kimihiro's back.

She had no shadow, Kimihiro saw with a slow rising of fear. This was no ordinary spirit. She was so strong, so adept at controlling the spread of her cold presence, that he hadn't even realized she was dead. But it was obvious now. The increasing chill in the air had him shivering - only a spirit of incredible power could have shielded such a strong presence for so long.

She was almost on the level of a goryo.

Kimihiro's hand tightened on the watch in his pocket, the now-freezing metal cutting into the flesh of his hand.

The spirit's eyes flicked down to where his hand disappeared into his pocket then returned to his face. She knew what he held - Kimihiro could see it in the cold calculation that filled her eyes, a measuring of the power that he possessed. They fixed on him in a challenging stare that practically dared him to summon the construct.

"Oi!"

Kimihiro started at the familiar voice.

The nurse's eyes moved to stare over his shoulder then she was gone, disappearing without a sign to show that she had ever been there. The freezing cold abruptly ended with her leaving, making the corridor seem unnaturally warm.

Kimihiro stared at the empty space blankly, watch still held in hand. She hadn't made a move to attack him, hadn't done anything that could be construed as a threat. So what had been her intention?

A hand closed on his shoulder and Kimihiro jumped, nearly dropping the watch. He turned to see Doumeki standing beside him, narrowed eyes fixed on the hand Kimihiro still had in his pocket.

"I told you to wait until I came and got you." There was an edge of anger in his words and his pale eyes were narrow under lowered brows. The hand on Kimihiro's shoulder had tightened into a grip that, while not painful, was firm enough to be noticeable.

Kimihiro was taken aback. He hadn't seen Doumeki so angry before. Not about something like this. He slipped his hand from his pocket, releasing the tight grip he had on the watch. "I was coming to get you." His eyes slid back to the empty corridor. "But I was led the wrong way."

"Led?" Doumeki's grip had loosened slightly. He was eyeing the corridor narrowly

Kimihiro met his gaze, hoping that he would continue to calm down. He kept his voice soft and even, wary in the face of Doumeki's anger. "I thought she was a nurse at first but it turned out I was wrong." He paused, knowing that Doumeki wasn't going to like it. "She was a spirit, a strong one. Not many can hide the fact that they're dead."

Doumeki was silent for a moment. "Lady Amita said that there was something that shouldn't be here."

He wasn't surprised at that assessment. "Did she say anything more?" It appeared the lady still retained some of her sight. Having resided in the Ward for several months, she would likely have a better idea of the situation.

Doumeki's eyes shifted to his right eye but didn't waver. "Not about the Northern Ward."

So Lady Amita had told Doumeki what she knew of the situation. Kimihiro held Doumeki's gaze. It was hard to tell exactly how much she had said but Doumeki must have a better picture of what had happened so long ago. But he hadn't put it all together yet. He doubted Doumeki would be with him now if that was the case.

Kimihiro tried to ignore the unease that thought brought to life. The situation at the Northern Ward was something he could deal with now. There was no point worrying over what would come later.

"From the condition of the unwarded wings, it's clear that the Northern Ward has become infested by lesser supernatural entities. At first I thought it might be simply negligence-" he could feel his jaw clench at the thought. "Which would be bad enough. Without wards, any building can be left open to supernatural entities that can freely access those within." The anger he had had felt before ignited again, tightening his voice and his grip on his cane. "In a place of healing, where there are people who are physically and mentally weak, a breeding ground of sorts is created. If unopposed, lower forms such as gaichu are left free to feed and multiply. Such a situation in itself is a serious problem."

Lord Durham had not been attending to his duties, that was clear.

And neither had the secondary line. It was the duty of members of the second line to monitor the status of the Ward under their protection. They were meant to watch out not only for threats of a supernatural nature but those in the political arena as well. And, perhaps most importantly, they had the responsibility to support the Keeper of their Ward. It entailed aid in all forms - monetary, politically and supernaturally - as was required. And when a Keeper strayed from their duty, a push to nudge them back on their course. Or if the situation warranted it, finding someone to replace them in their duties. In the case of the Northern Ward, however, the Iemura line had clearly failed.

Doumeki was standing patiently, simply watching and waiting for Kimihiro to continue.

"But there is more than negligence here." Kimihiro's words were cold, freighted with anger. "Lord Dexter and Lady Halstead have both suffered relapses - and Lady Dexter has led me to believe that they are not the only ones. Normally I would be inclined to think that it was a simple case of poor care or the natural course of their illnesses."

"But you don't think that." Doumeki hadn't changed expression.

Kimihiro's eyes narrowed. "Both Lord Dexter and Lady Halstead show signs of damage that they couldn't have acquired from normal means." The head of the cane was a ball of unyielding metal lines cutting into his hand. "And both of them have had locks of hair cut."

Doumeki's eyes flickered in recognition. "Lady Amita did as well."

Kimihiro's gut clenched. Not just Lady Halstead but Lady Amita as well. He had thought they were safe, that they would find some relief, a chance to heal in peace. But they had simply been passed from one horror to another. The cane creaked in his grasp. "There are several methods used to increase one's power by unnatural means." Treating it like another lesson for Doumeki helped steady him but Kimihiro could feel the anger like a relentless tide that was simply biding its time. "One can remove the natural restrictions on their own power, borrow power from another or join with an elemental. All of these methods can be used by both the living and the dead." If only they weren't.

"In all cases there must be a link between the source of the power and the one that receives it. Blood is one of the most powerful ties." His gaze fell on the window sill. There was a faint liming of dust on its surface and he reached out with a finger. Grey coated his finger as he lifted it, a clear streak left behind on the dark wood. "Blood, flesh-" Kimihiro stared hard at the dust, picking out tiny fragments, trying not see anything but what was in front of him. "-a part of someone can become the symbol of a person and their power. To possess part of someone is to hold power over them." Just as to consume part of someone could consume their power. He smeared the dust between his fingers.

"And hair?" Doumeki had gone quiet, unnaturally still.

"The same applies." Kimihiro turned away from the window to look at Doumeki. "Someone has been preying on the patients in the Northern Ward. Draining them slowly of life." He consciously tried to loosen his tight grip on his cane, flexing the fingers one by one. "It must have been going on for years." And claimed dozens of lives already if the spirits which had trailed him in the wards were any indication.

All the spirits bar one.

Kimihiro stared down the corridor thoughtfully. "I think that she was trying to lead me somewhere."

Doumeki was silent for a moment. "You intend to follow." His voice was flat. It was a statement rather than a question. Not an entirely happy one.

"She could have harmed me if she wanted." Could have killed him as he followed her unsuspecting.

Doumeki didn't look happy about the decision but didn't protest.

Kimihiro took it as an agreement. He reached into his pocket and retrieved the pocket watch. "Ryuu." As soon as it had pulled itself free of the watch, the small gold dragon raced up his arm to perch on his shoulder. Kimihiro replaced the watch in his pocket. He had been working on extending the time he could keep Ryuu at his side and he was confident that in its current state, he could keep it up for several hours.

In its current state. If he had to use the construct then the time would diminish. But at least this way, they were both guarded from any unexpected attack. Ryuu was poised to act at the first sign of any threat.

Not that it seemed to reassure Doumeki. The Keeper was looking at the small dragon with an unhappy frown.

_His Grace is extremely protective of you-_

Kimihiro pushed Hikideshi's words from his mind and concentrated on the task at hand. No matter Doumeki's feelings on the situation, he had to find the cause of what had been happening at the Northern Ward.

He started down the corridor, holding tightly to his cane and Doumeki walked with him. The Keeper's mouth was held in tight lines of disapproval but he didn't say anything - simply eyed their surroundings warily. He didn't seem to place the same faith in the dead nurse as Kimihiro did.

But Kimihiro was more confident. Unfriendly as she had appeared, she hadn't made any threatening moves. As a nurse who had remained at the place where she had worked in life, despite the wards that marked the walls, it was possible that she regarded the hospital as her domain. And was no more pleased by the changes that had occurred than he was.

The corridor turned once more, leading down into a more shadowed passage that was lined with several wooden doors, most likely offices rather than private rooms. There was a figure in white halfway down the corridor, standing in front of a door. The nurse who had vanished at Doumeki's arrival. She looked less substantial than she had before and the corridor was colder than it should have been. The control that she had shown before was fraying around the edges, the freeze of her presence escaping in irregular bursts.

Kimihiro eyed her warily, steps slowing somewhat. Ryuu had assumed an alert stance on his shoulder but otherwise didn't move.

The nurse's cold gaze moved from Doumeki to the dragon construct. Finally the spirit met Kimihiro's gaze then gestured at the door before vanishing once more.

Doumeki was staring down the hall warily but Kimihiro only started walking again, more confidently. "Here." Kimihiro stopped where the spirit had stood, staring at the door she had indicated. There was a small bronze plaque on its upper half, a line of precise letters etched into its surface. Cyril Radford, Head Physician.

Kimihiro's eyes narrowed. As a physician, Radford would have access to all the patients of the hospital without question at any hour. It was the ideal cover for someone to gain access to weak people, people who couldn't defend themselves against physical attacks let alone those of a supernatural nature.

Kimihiro took a cautious grip on the door handle, Ryuu poised alertly on one shoulder. He doubted that Radford would have left his office, the centre of his work, unguarded.

~x~X~x~


	61. False Physician VII

ENTWINING FATES:

FALSE PHYSICIAN

VII

The handle gave way under Kimihiro's hand and the door swung open, smoothly swinging back on its hinges. Kimihiro was walking inside even before it fully opened, scanning the room with wary eyes.

Doumeki followed close behind him, coming up to his side as Kimihiro stopped a few paces into the room. He stood tensely for a few moments, a feeling of stifling claustrophobia suddenly rising within him. The room was dim and musty but not to the extent where he felt enclosed. He could only assume that the feeling came from something else. A glance aside showed that Kimihiro was unaffected. He was staring at the desk on the far side of the room a fixed gaze, the gold dragon on his shoulder eyeing the piece with a similar intensity.

Kimihiro suddenly moved, turning and closing the door behind them with a barely perceptible thud. He caught Doumeki's questioning gaze. "We don't want to be disturbed." Kimihiro glanced back at the desk, a frown on his face. "This might take a while."

The room was slightly different from the typical office. The large desk that dominated the room was covered with an assortment of books, papers and glass jars. Bizarre objects floated in the clear liquid behind the glass and there was even a rack of corked test tubes on one side of the desk. Doctor Radford apparently wasn't a very organized man.

Shelves of thick, leather-bound books lined the walls above a number of cabinets and drawers that presumably held other instruments of the physician's trade. More of the glass jars stood on the shelves and on top of the cupboards that jutted out to form a wider shelf. Macabre items were neatly arranged on its surface: various skulls, wired skeletons of small creatures and even a human skull, devoid of its lower jaw, teeth set on the polished wood in a open bite.

The skull of some small animal sitting on one of the shelves caught Doumeki's eye and he stared at it more closely for a moment. One glance at the small domed skull and the sharp teeth identified it as a cat. He wondered whether the good doctor had purchased it or gone out to retrieve it himself.

Doumeki's eyes returned to the desk. Amid the complex jumble of esoteric items and papers was a half-hidden object that looked out of place. A ceramic bowl enclosed with a shallow dome that had a small circular opening in the top. It was an item that was more likely to be found on a lady's dresser rather than a physician's desk. A hair receiver. An object that had only one purpose: to collect hairs to be made into romantic mementos and mourning jewellery. (1)

Just looking at the fragile porcelain vessel and its innocuous decorations of hand-painted roses on briars made Doumeki slightly nauseous. If they needed confirmation that they were searching in the right place, there it was. "Do you think he used that?" He nodded to the hair receiver.

Kimihiro looked at the vessel and nodded. "Doctor Radford hasn't bothered to hide what he was doing. He was probably able to act without anyone recognizing the significance of his actions." There was anger in his voice again. His lips were pressed firmly together as he turned to survey the shelves. "Likely he didn't bother to take his work elsewhere, either. What we're looking for should be here."

"What _are_ we looking for?" Doumeki glanced at the hair receiver one more time before turning away from the desk altogether.

Kimihiro sent him a sharp glance, as if suspecting some mockery but his face cleared as he saw Doumeki's face. "Hair. There are several methods to use what he's gathered but it will be one of three things." Kimihiro's eyes narrowed as he peered into one of the jars set on the shelves. "What it is will depend on the level of skill Radford is working at." He had dropped the appellation of doctor, clearly feeling that the man didn't deserve it.

"If he's simply stumbled upon some old text, it's likely to be crude, nothing more than a knotted ball of hair." A grimace of disgust crossed Kimihiro's face and he put some distance between him and the jar he had been examining. "A more advanced piece will be likely if he has some sort of ability. He would be able to sense the power in each strand and it would enable him to weave them together more efficiently into a fabric that would be much more powerful."

He slowly walked along the shelves, eyes passing over the contents; lingering on certain books and skipping over the murky contents of the glass jars. "But if he's had help-" Kimihiro paused, eyeing the skeleton of a bird, wired onto a branch in an attitude of spreading fleshless wings, "-it might be a more complicated structure." He turned, his dark blue eyes meeting Doumeki's in a pensive stare. "The greater the number of the threads, the greater the collected power. But to be able to use them fully, someone would have to have knowledge that isn't widely available in this day and age."

"How likely would that be?"

"Extremely unlikely." But he didn't sound pleased at his own words.

The information was limited to private collections then. Doumeki suspected that the Watanuki mansion held various rare documents that had not survived otherwise. Guarded and not intended for public consumption. But that protection might have failed somewhere. If rare documents were falling into people's hands they were facing a larger problem. One that was not just confined to the hospital. The papers would have to come from somewhere. It was an idea that didn't sit well with Doumeki anymore that it did with Kimihiro.

"Is it likely to be in a certain place?" Doumeki left the desk and walked over to Kimihiro's side, surveying the multiple draws and cabinets. A thorough search of them all would take hours. Especially when it wasn't quite clear what they were looking for.

Kimihiro shook his head. "It could be anywhere." He gestured to his room with the cane he held in his hand. "Though it's likely to be somewhere out of sight." He frowned. "I can't sense anything out of the ordinary," he admitted quietly. "It's likely to be sealed in something to hide its presence."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed. He had almost gotten used to the oppressive feel of the room but now it was flung back into his consciousness. It was a heaviness in the air, a closing in, as if the room was filled with things he couldn't see.

Kimihiro was still talking. "Practitioners usually set up wards or other protections to guard items of power." He looked around the room, frowning at the detritus of death that was displayed around the room. "But it appears that Radford hasn't bothered." He hesitated, "Or didn't know how. Which would suggest that he wasn't taught formally." Kimihiro was frowning at this stage, his thoughts having taken a darker turn. His fingers were absently clenching and unclenching around the head of his cane. "Either way, he's probably confident that no one would discover his work. I doubt anyone who came across what we're looking for would know what it was, anyway." His gaze grew distant. "It's an ancient practice that isn't used very often." The tone of his voice suggested that there were good reasons for that. "While there are traces, I'm not sensing anything that is an immediate threat." Dark blue eyes turned to Doumeki in a genuine look of concern. "And you?"

Doumeki's eyes widened slightly. While Kimihiro had said that he was going to rely on him more, Doumeki hadn't really expected him to. Not in this way.

He paused for a moment, focusing on the sensation of the room they stood in. "There's-" He fell silent, frustrated with his inability to describe it. As Hikideshi had hinted, it was harder to sense things outside Kimihiro's mansion. There was no clear signal - only conflicting sensations that made it hard to separate them from each other and filter what he wanted to find. Kiyoimizu had been easy in comparison - the structured planting had made separating out different elements simple; they had stood out in the nearly-silent background flow. The office they now stood in was complex in comparison. The room seemed to be filled with an inaudible off-key note that scraped at his nerves.

Kimihiro was unnaturally patient for once. The anger that had been edging his every move receded. He looked around the room and then back to Doumeki. "Is it a distinct sensation - limited to a certain area - or a more general one?" His gaze was suddenly focused entirely on Doumeki, the full force of his dark blue eyes staring at him. Without the usual irritation or anger.

Kimihiro's close presence was suddenly distracting. Doumeki frowned, trying to shove away unwarranted thoughts and focus on the situation. No matter how appealing it suddenly was to consider how different Kimihiro looked when he wasn't angry. He tried to focus on the sensation that filled the room.

"The drawers." The words were on his lips before he even knew what he was saying. He couldn't say what had moved him to say that - he still couldn't describe what he was feeling. But he was certain that the drawers contained what they were looking for.

Kimihiro's eyebrows rose in surprise at the sudden answer. He looked at the cabinets and the myriad of drawers that ran across the wall of the room, a sudden wary expression on his face. One of his hands reached out towards the handle of a nearby drawer.

There was a glass on one of the shelves above. For some reason Doumeki's attention was suddenly caught by the liquid inside. It took him a moment to realize that it was moving; the clear liquid bubbling with increasing agitation behind the glass.

Before Doumeki could do anything, the vial shattered.

~x~X~x~

_Crack!_

Kimihiro only had a second to register the sound and then glass and clear liquid was falling down towards him.

The contents of the vial were flung out in a glittering arc. Instinct had Kimihiro turning aside, protecting himself from the spray, even as Ryuu jumped clear. It hit his coat in a line of liquid, a series of small wet thuds. Almost immediately the smell of burning fabric filled the air and Kimihiro frantically pulled it off, taking his jacket off as well. His cane dropping from his hand to land rolling on the carpet at his feet.

It was acid. If he hadn't turned, it would have been eating flesh now rather than cloth.

Other hands were helping, pulling coat and jacket off his arms. Doumeki had avoided the spray and was helping him in the frantic bid to remove the burning cloth. In a matter of moments, coat and jacket were thrown smoking to the floor. Kimihiro didn't have time to feel relief, though. He was suddenly aware of the roiling presence on the other side of the room. Before he had been sensing so many different things that it was hard to single any particular thing out; the glass jars, the skulls and the other miscellaneous items all emitted disturbing sensations. But now there was a distinct malevolent focus, cold and dark, on the other side of the room.

A monoke.

It was moving even as he turned to face it. Tearing across the room towards them.

Kimihiro only had time to entertain one frightened thought as it drew close. _Doumeki-_

Ryuu flashed aside, rearing up with a threatening hiss in front of the Keeper. The construct's black eyes furious as it swelled, sinuous coils held in a threatening arc.

The monoke's course changed at the last minute. Even as the gold dragon raked claws through her insubstantial form, she tore free.

Kimihiro found himself face to face with her. For a split instant he could see what she had been. No beauty. Attractive in a kind way. Loving. But now pain and grief were pouring from her, along the lines of her long black hair. A thick line trailed from the strands, a knotted and twisted length that suddenly seemed to fill the room. Before he could register where it led, her lips pulled back into a snarl, twisting her face into a painful wrench of hate. **_My son!_**

Kimihiro's heart stuttered as her hand thrust into his chest. The monoke's cold fingers reached through flesh to close around his heart. Its beats faltered in fear even as the freezing fingers closed around it. Closed around it and tightened. The monoke's mouth was a victorious twist as she squeezed the fragile organ.

Ryuu fell into a frenzy. Slashing at her with elongated claws even as its teeth tore into the arm disappearing into Kimihiro's chest.

Her grip loosened from around his heart and it jolted into movement, labouring to as if to make up for its sudden lapse. Consumed by the ache in his chest, Kimihiro gasped for air, trying to stand on legs that refused to support his weight. A strong arm wrapped around his waist before he could fall, jerking him up and dragging him back across the room.

Doumeki.

Kimihiro would have made a protest at the rough handling but then Ryuu was moving before them, blocking the revenant's path towards them. The golden dragon drawing on so much power that Kimihiro thought for a moment his heart might burst. The bracelet on his left wrist flared with a sudden warmth and then the pain steadied back into a bearable pull and there was the rapid thunder of his heart, the cutting conflagration that was his eye. Confirmation that he was alive. Most painfully so.

Doumeki was still holding him up. Kimihiro got his feet under him and turned in the embrace to see Ryuu a deadly gold ribbon flashing around the frightful revenant. The infuriated construct was on the offensive, jaws scissoring and claws slashing, pushing the monoke further and further back. As far away from Kimihiro as the small room allowed. Ryuu wasn't going to allow her to get pass it again.

Kimihiro's entire chest ached like it had been seized in a vice, stabbing pain with every inhalation. Every heartbeat seemed heavy, a dull pain expanding with every beat. He was lucky she hadn't squeezed hard enough to burst something. She would have succeeded in killing him if that was the case.

Doumeki's arm was still around him. Kimihiro didn't protest. He wasn't feeling entirely steady at the moment and Doumeki was a solid support at his side. Kimihiro was even prepared to ignore the hand that was resting on his side. The weak feeling in his legs suggested if he rejected Doumeki's help he wouldn't be able to remain standing.

Instead Kimihiro simply focused on breathing and slowing his racing heart. Trying to ignore the raw burn in his chest that still flared. Ryuu's sudden draw of power had caught him off guard; it hadn't been a conscious release of power but an unexpected seizure that had been too much at once. Even now the draw by the construct had steadied, the constant pull of power was raw, painful when it shouldn't have been. But Ryuu hadn't drawn on this much power before.

He gazed across the room. Ryuu had boxed the monoke in the corner behind the desk. Despite repeated attempts to bypass the construct, she couldn't break free. The gold dragon had retained its unprecedented growth and now used the great looping coils of its body as a barrier.

"Is it contained?" Doumeki's attention was on the corner of the room as well. He couldn't see the monoke but he was eyeing Ryuu's contortions to hold it back. His grip had tightened around Kimihiro's waist.

"For the moment." It came out a bit breathless. Ryuu was holding the monoke back for now but Kimihiro was all too aware of the energy streaming out of him to feed the construct. It was an edged wire that was steadily drawing on his strength. He wasn't feeling the exhaustion of over-extension yet, but he didn't know how long he could keep it up.

Doumeki turned his head towards him, a close stare of darkened gold. His eyes had narrowed and his mouth was tight. Kimihiro could see that his words hadn't been reassuring.

But Doumeki was right. Something had to be done.

Kimihiro glanced around the room. He spotted his cane lying on the floor, having rolled to a stop against the leg of a nearby chair. It could serve as a point in need, though only for a short period of time.

He suddenly remembered the trailing line running from the monoke's hair; an unnatural tie that provided a key to her presence. She had been bound, forcibly tied to guard the false physician's office. If he could break that tie... What he needed was to find the object which the monoke was tied to. For her to be so strong, she had to be drawing power from somewhere.

Kimihiro opened his sight to his full extent, ignoring the spike of pain that shot though his eye. After the pain of having his heart squeezed, it was negligible. Almost immediately, a web of dark lines overlaid the room in oppressive bands. He ignored most of them, intent on locating the lines that connected the monoke to her vessel. It wasn't hard. The taut lines were like curbing chains, straining and quivering with the frantic movements of the monoke. Contracting even as he watched. And they led to the desk.

He didn't have time to explain things. Kimihiro planted one hand firmly on Doumeki's chest and twisted free of his grasp. The move caught Doumeki by surprise and Kimihiro was moving before Doumeki could get a hold of him. He headed for the cane, practically falling to the floor next to it, his fingers fumbling before they grasped the smooth length. He struggled back to his feet, pushing off the carpet with one hand.

A hand wrapped around his other wrist and yanked him up the rest of the way. Doumeki had followed him, not impressed by his actions.

But Kimihiro ignored the hard grip on his wrist, eyes on the monoke's struggles. Kimihiro twisted the head of the cane, releasing the spike in its base with a muted snick. And then he swung it across the desk, cutting through the strand.

The monoke shrieked. A high, ear-splitting sound that had Kimihiro dropping the cane and hopelessly slapping his palms to his ears. The sound only bored into him, echoing through his bones and scraping along his nerves. The headache he'd been trying to ignore immediate burst into a full-blown stabbing pain that consumed his right eye.

Doumeki was saying something but Kimihiro couldn't hear it over the horrid screeching. He looked at Doumeki's face, trying to make it out. Doumeki's eyebrows were lowered in a frown but his expression was alarmed, his eyes fierce, almost fearful. He knew that something had gone terribly wrong.

Kimihiro sought out the binding line through squinting eyes. His sight was still fully open and he could easily see the thick twisting line. There was a nick in it, a gaping gouge that stretched thin fibres like needle-thin teeth in an open mouth. It was hardly any damage for the blow he had dealt. And the binding had tightened its grip in the monoke. Even as he watched the twining threads dug into the monoke's skull, thousands of twisted black fingers that had the spirit sinking to her knees and screaming. The rent was beginning to heal itself as well, thin threads slowly contracting to pull the two sides of the tear together.

It was reacting to the damage. And Kimihiro suspected that it wouldn't simply take the next blow.

He needed to try again. Cut the line while he still could. Blast it with as much power as he could manage.

He knelt unsteadily and reached for the cane at his feet. His fingers closed over the cane only to drop it again when Ryuu suddenly increased the draw of power again, sending a bolt of pain through his chest. One hand pressing to his chest, he glanced up.

Ryuu was straining to hold her back, entirely wrapped around the monoke now, claws digging into the carpet and grasping the desk in an effort to keep its place. The binding's tightening grip had sent the monoke into a desperate frenzy. She was raking at the golden dragon with clawed hands, disregarding the teeth and claws that tore through her, ripping free great chunks of her form that smoked and dispersed in huge billowing clouds which choked the air. Her eyes were wild as she stared across room, fixed on him. **My son!** She surged forward, only held back by Ryuu's quick move to tighten the coils of his body around her. **Don't touch my son! Get away from him!** Despite the construct's efforts she had dragged them both away from the wall.

Doumeki's eyes were on the struggle as well, even though one half of it invisible to his eyes. His gaze flicked to Kimihiro and suddenly his expression changed, a hard determined look stealing into his eyes. His hand suddenly thrust into his jacket pocket.

No, Doumeki, you idiot- Kimihiro reached for his arm but a pull of pain in his chest cut the movement short. Doumeki's hand left his pocket and flicked up in a throwing gesture.

Three scarlet cranes were tossed into the air. Simple red squares of paper folded over and over again to form stylized shapes. But they were more in Kimihiro's sight. They glowed faintly at first, then sparked alight into small flares of light as they fell and the paper wings started flapping. They crossed the room in a tilting course that became more steady, faster as they lifted in the air and headed straight for the line that bound the monoke.

Two suddenly entered a kamikaze dive, arrowing for the black line. They were blazing now and left a fiery afterimage in the air behind them. The cranes collided with the twisted rope, two bright explosions of light. When Kimihiro blinked his vision clear, their bright red wings were still faintly fluttering and they were generating a steady silver light. Small threads had erupted from the line and were winding over them, trying to crush them, but they stubbornly fluttered on, trapped either side of the healing tear.

The last crane was still flying. It swooped into a dive, burning brighter as it headed towards the tear in the line. But it didn't collide with the tear as its comrades had. The brightly coloured little bird skipped beneath it and rose in a series of quick flaps, circling back over the line, marking the space between the two struggling cranes. It left a silver trail behind it and the threads that had been pulling the tear together shrivelled, the rip gaping open once more.

Light dimming, the crane started back across the room, loosing height. Its wing beats started to falter, the path of its flight becoming erratic as it made its way back towards Doumeki. But it still had the coordination to flutter in a wavering circle above Kimihiro's cane where it lay on the floor before propelling itself towards Doumeki with one last flap. The spark died out and it fell at Doumeki's feet, a dead piece of paper.

Doumeki was moving as soon as it hit the ground. He snatched up the cane and lifted it in preparation of striking a blow.

Kimihiro didn't try to stop him, frozen at the sight of him. Doumeki was usually a void in his sight, appearing as if Kimihiro's sight was closed entirely. But he wasn't anymore. It was as if the constant warding had suddenly cracked open, revealing the power it had hidden. Even as the cane lowered in a forceful swing, a twisting line shot off from Doumeki's hands, wrapping around the cane and turning it into a flaming line of light.

Kimihiro stared. Doumeki wasn't meant to be able to do that.

Doumeki brought the cane down precisely between the two weakly fluttering cranes, connecting with the previous damage that Kimihiro had wrought.

The line was sheered through cleanly, breaking in half with an audible snap. The two halves shrank apart, shrivelled like cut vines, and fell away. The two red cranes fell with it, hitting the carpet soundlessly as the line dissolved into a black sludge that sank into the floor.

The monoke vanished with it, her screams suddenly cut off. The dark atmosphere of the room suddenly lightened, no longer darkened by her presence.

Ryuu hit the ground with a thump. After a few moments of staring curiously at the spot where the monoke had been, the construct shrank to its smallest size and ran back across the room. Kimihiro absently held out a hand to it, only getting up as it leapt to his hand and ran up his arm to his shoulder. His chest still ached and he felt like someone had kicked him a few times when he was down, but otherwise he wasn't feeling too bad.

And at the moment he was too preoccupied by what he had seen to be concerned about his bodily aches. Kimihiro stared at Doumeki, who was retrieving the two cranes from the floor. He appeared like he always did: a persistent void that hid his true nature. If Kimihiro hadn't seen the brief flare, he wouldn't have known what lay beneath.

Kimihiro pressed his hand into his right eye, Ryuu darting to his other shoulder. They were lucky there had only been a monoke in the room at the time. And that they were in the warded part of the hospital. If they were somewhere else, that brief spark would have attracted everything in the vicinity.

Kimihiro winced as his headache got worse. If Doumeki was going to start doing that, then keeping him safe was going to get more difficult. Every supernatural entity in the capital would recognize him as an exorcist.

Fingers grasped his wrist, pulling his hand down. Kimihiro's glare dissolved as Doumeki pinched the point where the bones joined his thumb and forefinger, abruptly cutting off the pain. Kimihiro relaxed, suddenly realizing that his eyebrows had been lowered in a pained frown.

"Thank you." He was genuinely grateful that Doumeki had been watching what Hikideshi had done the last time. He could have done it himself but usually he was so mazed by the pain that he forgot that he had a method to end it. Even now he was still slightly light-headed, his thoughts somewhat disjointed, but the stabbing pain was gone.

Doumeki handed him the cane and Kimihiro absently accepted it, watching as Doumeki bent to retrieve the last crane and tuck it carefully into one pocket. "Lady Amita's work?" The energy that had powered the cranes had been familiar and the sight of the cranes had him finally making the connection.

Gold eyes were suddenly fixed on him with Doumeki's full attention. "How can you tell?" He seemed unusually interested in the reply.

"It's been a while but the feel is unmistakable." His reply was absent. He was still studying Doumeki. "How did you know to do that?"

Doumeki shrugged. "I didn't. But throwing things worked before."

Throwing things. Kimihiro closed his eyes. It was no wonder Haruka had asked him to watch over Doumeki. It was a wonder he hadn't already gotten himself killed.

His attention turned back to the problem of the monoke. He looked at the desk, trying to work out where the other end of the line had been connected. The fading black sludge on the carpet led directly towards the piece of furniture.

Kimihiro rubbed his right temple. Whatever had been used to tie the monoke to the room had to be within the desk itself. While the connection was now severed, it would at least provide a clue to the nature of what they were dealing with.

Kimihiro used the cane to steady his steps and walked around the desk. The line had been tied to something. He scanned the desk, eyes finally falling on the row of drawers that were tucked under it. He took a hold of the top drawer's handle and yanked it open.

Paperwork, a few stray pens rattling about in the tray were all that met his eyes.

Kimihiro slid it shut again and pulled out the next.

A splatter of black met his eyes. The line which had melted away on the carpet still partially remained, a black streak of foulness that snaked back further into the drawer. Towards something that glimmered palely in the shadows.

Kimihiro's jaw tightened and he pulled the drawer open as far as it would go. It caught halfway but it was enough to expose the pale object inside to the light. It was immediately recognizable. A skull sat carefully in one corner at the back of the drawer.

A chill ran through Kimihiro, clearing the last of the fog from his mind. He was suddenly alert, dread sharpening his thoughts with dreadful clarity. A skull. He had a sudden suspicion of whose it had been.

He set the cane aside, propping it up against the desk, and reached carefully into the drawer. Smooth bone and crisscrossing raised lines of rope met his fingers and he nearly gagged. Overlying the tactile sensations his fingers were receiving was a strange wet, almost spongy feel. It was almost like handling rotting meat, the flesh too-soft and slimy, giving away under the pressure of his fingers, sliding under his nails and rising up around his fingers.

Kimihiro quickly placed the skull on the desk, sitting on its side and rocking slightly as it left his grip too quickly. He uselessly wiped his hands on his trousers in an attempt to erase the lingering sensation. But they soon stilled as the appearance of the skull sunk in.

A ghastly series of hair ropes crisscrossed the pale bone, disappearing into punctured eye sockets and nasal apertures. Lying on its side as it was, he could see the dark lines threaded through the foramen magnum and palate (2) to wind around the lower jaw, tying the fleshless teeth shut in a forced grin. A skull bound in hair ropes.

Doumeki stared down at the skull, a strange look on his face. "Bone." He glanced up at Kimihiro. His eyes were narrow, his lips twisted into a grimace. "Like flesh and blood."

"Worse." Kimihiro was staring at the hair ropes. They were neatly braided, the dark hair gleaming in the light. The way they had been wrapped around the skull, through the holes that had been carefully chiselled through orbits and palate, spoke of long practise. "Blood and flesh breaks down over time but bone lasts much longer." Centuries. If one knew how, it was possible to tie a spirit to an object long enough for them to grow in power. "It works best for binding spirits."

He glanced over desk and spotted a letter opener lying carelessly on a pile of papers. He picked up and examined the sharp blade - not blunt as most were these days. It was as good as a knife.

Setting a careful hand of the side of the skull, ignoring the way his fingers felt like they were sinking into rotten matter, Kimihiro began sawing at the smooth braids. Strands parted beneath the blade, fraying apart in stiff bristles. After a few moments, one rope gave, ends sliding off bone to lie on the desk, and Kimihiro started on another. The skull's mouth had been bound closed for a reason and Kimihiro was determined to find out why. He had been distracted at the time, but he still recalled the monoke's words.

It only took a few minutes to cut through the hair ropes. The last glossy rope suddenly snapped beneath the blade, fraying hair unravelling from its tight binding. Released, the lower jaw fell free, teeth parting to disgorge a small lopsided sphere that rolled across the table to stop against the stand of beakers. It looked like nothing more than rough lump of clay.

Doumeki moved at his side and Kimihiro shot out a hand to grasp his wrist. "Don't touch it!" He held his grip until he was certain that Doumeki wasn't going to do anything and then slowly released his hold.

A lump of clay. Kimihiro knew that didn't even begin to describe the object that sat on the table. It was a malevolent void in his senses, an unnaturally blank space. It wasn't like a ward but a block. Cutting something off.

Kimihiro set aside the letter opener and withdrew a snail pick from his sleeve. With one swift move he brought it down, point first, onto the small lump of clay.

It crumbled at the touch, clay turning into thousands of tiny dark grains. As they fell back, scattering across the desk, something surfaced from the dark brown tide. Small white lengths that fell out from a skeletal fist into disarticulated fragments. Kimihiro stared down at the small bones, snail pick still held in his hand. Phalanges, tiny finger joints. Metacarpals that had once formed a small palm. Various small pieces of bone that had once made up a tiny wrist. And two larger bones. An ulna and radius, the thin bones abruptly shorn off halfway along the shafts.

_My son!_

It had been a binding of two spirits not one.

"You'll need to take them to the Ward." Kimihiro was surprised his voice was so calm. That he was feeling so calm. "I'll pay the tithes for the last rites."

Doumeki was staring at him, a strange expression on his face. Watchful, almost wary. His eyes dipped briefly to the bones on the desk then returned to Kimihiro's face. "Right."

Kimihiro started pulling the ties of braided hair free from the skull. The ropes he had cut were retrieved easily enough. Those that were threaded through nose and palate were more difficult, though. The hair caught on jagged fragments of bone and Kimihiro carefully unsnagged it before pulling the rest of the braid free. He then turned to the last one, the longest, which had been threaded through the skull in a complex web of hair and bone.

By the time he had finished, three long lengths of braided hair sat coiled on the table. Kimihiro made sure that he had retrieved all of it. He would have to dispose of them carefully. Kimihiro gently refitted the jaw back into its sockets and lifted it shut, teeth meeting soundlessly, the skull whole once more. He placed it on the desk next to the smaller bones scattered on the small mound of dark dirt.

But he couldn't just leave the tiny bones as they were. He reached into his pocket only to realize that he didn't have his handkerchief.

"Here." Doumeki had anticipated him and was holding out his own handkerchief.

Kimihiro stared it for a moment then took it with a nod of thanks. He started picking the tiny bones from the dark dirt. One at a time, carefully laying them on the small cloth. The small spread of thin ivory sticks and pieces looked even more pitiful grouped together. Kimihiro traced a small bone with one finger then started to fold the handkerchief, hiding the small bones. He placed the small package next to the released skull. Finally together and unbound by the ties that had held them imprisoned.

He had no idea how long they had been separated. The dry hair could have lasted for more than a century if it had been cared for correctly. It had to have been a long time for the woman to grow powerful enough to turn into a monoke. Though the binding to the office had been relatively new, she had been guarding it, somehow linking its sanctity with her son.

The infant son whose presence had been sealed off from her and used to control her. She had been driven half-mad, her desperation used as the perfect goad.

Kimihiro turned his attention turned to the shelves. To do something like this required specific knowledge. Radford had replicated a specific binding, one that was usually limited to ancient tomes. He must have had something to work from. And Kimihiro had every intention of finding it.

He straightened and skirted around the desk, intent on the shelves that lined the other side of the room. This time he ignored the glasses and strange items scattered on the shelves, focusing on the books themselves. There hundreds of them and he scrutinized every one carefully.

There was a movement at his side. A quick glance showed Doumeki staring at the shelves as well.

"He must have had one of the manuals on binding." Kimihiro was speaking his thoughts aloud as much for Doumeki's information. "That wasn't the work of an unguided individual." It was the polished work of a practitioner who had studied and practised his skills.

A thin book tucked into the shadow of two large, leather bound volumes caught his eye. Kimihiro's eyes narrowed. He reached out and pulled it free, one finger hooked over the top of the spine. It slid free easily and Kimihiro opened the cover to the flyleaf.

A faded inscription met his gaze, thin elegant writing on the age-spotted sheet.

_Lyndon._

_I pray you never need this. Another volume for your collection._

_Reinis._

The first name was familiar but the second wasn't. Kimihiro frowned and turned to the title page. It bore a bold typeface, the words **Ropes and Knots of Binding** implacable on the otherwise blank page. He had feared as much. The book had long gone out of circulation. Kimihiro knew of only a few that existed and he had the sinking suspicion that the book he held was one of their number, wrested from its keepers.

Doumeki was peering over his shoulder. Kimihiro turned his head slightly to look at him then turned his attention back to the book he held. "This isn't a common book." He started turning pages, anger growing as the ink drawings of braids and complex knots started growing in profusion. They started out simple at first, gradually growing in complexity. The volume was intended to educate practitioners about bindings they might encounter, but in Radford's hands it had practically been a manual.

He caught sight of a familiar image and his fingers stopped. Kimihiro's jaw clenched as he looked at the two-page spread. On one page there were a number of tools: a thin chisel, long thin hook and a round file. The other page bore the diagram of a skull from several angles, illustrating the series of thin ropes and knots that ran over it. It was a near perfect match for what they had found in the desk drawer.

Except for the twisted addition that had been sealed between the skull's jaws.

"Most were destroyed, only a few retained in private collections." Where they were meant to be kept out of the hands of those who would use the information within.

He had a deepening suspicion where the failure had been in this case. The Northern Ward held a collection that had rivalled the Watanuki library at one time. It certainly would have contained a copy of the volume he now held. For one to show up now within the bounds of the Ward - Kimihiro feared that it had come from the Keeper's household.

If he was right, then the Northern Ward had a larger problem than the presence of a rogue practitioner running loose in its hospital. Not that _that_ wasn't enough.

Kimihiro flicked through the rest of the book. The bindings only grew worse, moving from the dead to the living. Nearly endless possibilities that made him ill to contemplate. With what he had witnessed in the hospital wards, it didn't bode well for what had happened to the hair which had been harvested from the patients.

Kimihiro closed the book with an angry snap and placed the thin volume on top of the cabinet at the bird skeleton's feet. Just the touch of it made him feel vile and he was now left with the feel of filth covering his fingers like an invisible film of grease. Not even wiping them on his trousers helped to erase the sensation.

He only hoped that Radford hadn't worked his way through the entire book.

~x~X~x~

1) Exactly what I've said. Pieces like this adorned every well-bred Victorian lady's dresser.

2) Foramen magnum: the opening at the base of the skull where the spinal cord joins the brain;  
Palate: the roof of the mouth.

~x~X~x~


	62. False Physician VIII

ENTWINING FATES:

FALSE PHYSICIAN

VIII

Doumeki had watched it all silently, not quite willing to break the strained silence. Kimihiro had been wearing a strange mask-like expression that hadn't encouraged conversation and Doumeki didn't have anything to say anyway. He simply watched as Kimihiro carefully unravelled the ties of woven hair. Kimihiro handled the skull with a gentle concentration that was touching even as his expression was unnerving. A combination of tenderness and anger.

He didn't even say anything when Kimihiro suddenly speared the bookcase with a narrow look and started across the room with quick determined strides. Doumeki simply followed silently, doubtful that Kimihiro was aware of his presence he was so focused on his search. When Kimihiro did speak it was distracted, his attention on the pages that flipped under his fingers.

Doumeki peered at the ink drawings over his shoulder. Hundreds of knots and braids, growing more complex as the pages turned. The image of the skull they had found, precise instructions noted down under an old typeface heading: **The Binding of An Unwilling Spirit.** What had attacked Kimihiro had been forced to do it, then. Kimihiro's actions appeared more understandable in light of the new information.

But though Doumeki searched the page, there was nothing on the use of an infant's hand. Dr Radford must have added his own personal touches to the binding.

The pages turned once more, Kimihiro's face growing grimmer as the images began to turn to darker subjects. Blood, flesh and bone. Several examples of each were inked in with a fine attention to detail. Each more unsettling than the last.

Kimihiro finally snapped it shut, setting it aside, his eyes turning to the drawers he had begun to search before he had been interrupted. He took a step towards the nearest one only to freeze, head turning back to the shelves. The gold dragon on his shoulder had assumed a poised crouch, head turned in the same direction.

"What is it?" Doumeki moved closer, ready to act. Kimihiro had already had several close encounters today. He eyed the glass jars on the shelves warily.

"Something that shouldn't be here." The words were cold. Kimihiro reached out towards the shelves.

For a moment Doumeki thought he was reaching out for cat skull but then his hand reached forward into the space behind the skull-

Doumeki blinked. He could have sworn the shelves hadn't been that deep before.

-and retrieved a sheaf of papers that hadn't been there a moment ago.

Kimihiro slowly unfolded the sheets of paper. Doumeki couldn't see what was on them but Kimihiro's expression was enough. His face had drained of colour and his eyes were dark blackening pits, traced through with a flicker of fear and rising anger. The small gold dragon on his shoulder was letting out a furious hiss.

The papers were thrown down on top of the cabinets and then Kimihiro was pulling open drawers, one after the other, in quick succession. Doumeki kept back far enough so he wasn't in the way, but close enough to observe what was happening. He didn't think Kimihiro would take kindly to interference at the moment.

Kimihiro's expression changed as he searched through the drawers. At first it was disgust but it soon changed into sickened anger; a growing rage that was mixed with an increasing revulsion. He'd never seen Kimihiro furious before but he clearly was now.

Drawer after drawer revealed thick woven strands of stolen hair: soft sable, bright gold, rich mahogany, glittering silver and copper fire. All of different lengths: long cables from women; shorter lengths from men and varying soft coils that had been harvested from children. There were even thin delicate strands that could only have come from the heads of newborns.

Kimihiro's back was a stiff line, his body language clear with the loss of his coat and jacket. While the white sleeves of his arms were in constant movement, the pearl grey vest was a frozen shimmer as Kimihiro held his body still against the foulness he had uncovered. As he continued to pull open drawer after drawer, the faint tremor in his hands increased until it became a full-blown impediment as he pulled open the last drawer.

Kimihiro froze, staring down into the last drawer. The small gold dragon perched on his shoulder let out a furious hiss, small sinuous body held up in an angry arc. Kimihiro's jaw was tightly clenched and sweat beaded his temple as he stared at the contents of the drawer with pure loathing.

Doumeki peered down at what lay in the drawer. It was a long, thick multi-coloured rope that was coiled into a series of ugly complicated knots, broken strands sticking out of the glistening curves. Doumeki felt repulsed simply by looking at the creation that had been wrought from the suffering of countless people.

A deep hiss had him turning back to the construct. Ryuu's dark eyes glittered from Kimihiro's shoulder, claws dug into the fabric of the Kimihiro's vest. The dragon had grown in size, its tail slung over Kimihiro's chest in a protective curve.

Kimihiro's face was so pale that it looked like he was going to be sick. His right eye was narrowed into a painful wince even as he stared at the drawer's contents. "It holds people still living." Kimihiro's voice was strained. The hand still wrapped around the drawer's ornate handle suddenly tightened convulsively and he slammed the drawer shut again, abruptly walking to the other side of the room.

Doumeki glanced once more at the drawer before crossing the room to join him. He set a hand on Kimihiro's shoulder, applying pressure in the hope that it would help.

Kimihiro's eyes shut and he took a deep breath before opening them again. "I'll have to separate the strands." He hadn't objected to Doumeki's touch.

He was shaking; Doumeki could feel it under the hand he had on Kimihiro's shoulder, though the thin fabric of Kimihiro's vest and shirt. Doumeki tightened his grip.

It seemed to help somewhat. Kimihiro drew in a breath, the desperate look fading from his eyes.

"How can I help?" Doumeki took a small step closer do that their bodies were practically touching.

Kimihiro glanced up and finally _looked_ at him. A faint smile crossed his face before vanishing. "I'll need to set up a barrier."

A barrier. Doumeki slid a hand into his coat pocket to seek the item inside. Lady Amita's cranes weren't the only thing he had brought.

~x~X~x~

Hair. Glittering lines, fading and choked by black, the life of those they belonged slowly being drawn from them. There was a creeping film of dark rot that slowly overtook each hair, sucking the life out of it. A parasitic feeding that drew people to death. Men, women, children - there was no distinction. Only a lust for power that wiped out any compassion, any regard for the people who were crushed to meet that end.

It took someone who had lost their humanity to slowly kill sick and injured people who were given into their care. To offer healing and hopes of recovery all the while planning to withhold it and take away their lives instead.

Radford was despicable. A monster that was worse than any of the supernatural entities that ran rampant in the unprotected wards. They acted according to their nature. But Radford had chosen to do what he had done, knowing full well the consequences. He had slowly tortured and killed people under the cover of sickness, all in the name of self-interest.

And through a Strangling Knot, one of the forbidden methods, one which was too dangerous to be committed to paper. A practice that could be used on hundreds of people rather than just one or two. Capture, control and consumption. The basic principles used on a large scale. Only a master practitioner could have achieved it. And only with the tutoring of someone who was well-versed in turning such skills towards dark paths. To destroy and rend rather than protect and heal.

The papers he had found told him exactly what had happened. They contained detailed instructions that had walked an ambitious man far beyond the horrors encased in the book which he had obtained. Instructions written in an ancient hand that could only belong to one person. There was no doubt. He had found a human host and was now moving through the city. Had been for years.

The implications, embodied in the work Radford had been carrying out, was enough to make him sick. How many people had died already, unnoticed? The individuals that made up the knot represented hundred people and at least half of them had died. And then there were those who were still alive. Lord Dexter, Lady Halstead and even Lady Amita were caught in the foul coil, along with countless other innocents.

The hand on Kimihiro's shoulder tightened.

Kimihiro was still feeling slightly ill but Doumeki's concerned presence was enough to pull him back to his surroundings. There was still the possibility of saving those who still lived. Kimihiro was determined not to lose anyone else.

"Will this help?" Doumeki had taken his hand from Kimihiro's shoulder to pull a small vessel out of his pocket. A salt shaker.

Kimihiro stared. What was Doumeki doing with that in his pocket? Anticipating his next meal? The thought had a hysterical edge to it and Kimihiro clamped down on it.

Doumeki set the salt shaker down on top of the cabinet. "It was in Lady Amita's room."

So he'd just filched it. Kimihiro didn't know whether that was any better. Doumeki didn't seem to possess the respect for other people's possessions that most people had.

Or personal space, for that matter. Doumeki was doing a good impression of his shadow at the moment.

But the salt was useful. It was hard to say what had made Doumeki pick it up - Kimihiro was willing to admit that it could have been from some thought of protection - but the instinct had been a good one. Even if he hadn't acquired it in the best of ways.

"We can use it." With a bit of distance, he was past the horror of the repulsive knot and thinking about how to dismantle it. In a way the papers that had been left were a blessing. With detailed instructions on how it had been made, he had the information he needed to destroy it. The main knot was the problem - it connected all the smaller knots into one working. Once it was dismantled, the other would lose most of their power, no longer actively drawing on the lives they contained.

But the prospect of unravelling the main knot was a daunting one. Most of the dark malice involved in the working was centred on the ugly braid, a skin of filth over knotted hairs. Breaking it apart would be an ordeal. Not only would he have the task at hand but the foulness of the knot wearing at him as well. "Three rings should be enough to hold it in check." Barely. It would be better to have a powered ward instead of simple boundary lines of salt but Kimihiro suspected he'd need everything he could spare.

Doumeki was frowning. He looked down at the carpet at their feet. "The floor?"

Kimihiro followed his gaze and nodded. "It's the best place." He walked back across the room and pulled out the drawer once more.

His breath caught in his throat. Ryuu was an angry coil on his shoulder, a small hiss escaping between the dragon's teeth. Kimihiro steeled himself, though, and reached into the drawer to take hold of the twisted rope of hair.

Like the skull it had a curious layering of sensation. On one hand it felt dry and brittle to the touch. But on the other...it felt wet. Each strand slippery to the touch, a thick liquid coating his fingers and burning his skin. Kimihiro grit his teeth against the burn and lifted it from the drawer. The burning only grew worse and he quickly moved back to where Doumeki stood by the desk to place it carefully on the floor.

Doumeki stared down at the knot, aversion on his face. But without a word, he screwed off the lid of the salt shaker and started pouring salt. In a matter of moments a neat circle had been drawn on the carpet. Doumeki started on another, an inch or so outside the first.

Kimihiro made no objection. He doubted his hands would be steady enough and the barrier would only be stronger with a Keeper making it. He looked down at his hands. They were clean of the sticky black liquid but they still burned, a faint itching that had him wiping them on his clothes to try and get rid of the sensation.

Doumeki finished the last ring and stood, screwing the lid back on the salt shaker. He had done a good job. Three concentric rings, spaced about an inch apart, enclosed the piece. Kimihiro could feel the difference. Some of the edge of the knot's presence had diminished, making it more bearable. Now all he had to do was dismantle it.

Kimihiro sat outside the thin rings of salt, easing himself down slowly. His chest still hurt and the movement started up a dull ache. The proximity to the knot didn't held, either. He found that he was breathing shallowly, his skin growing clammy as sweat started to spring up on his skin. Kimihiro clenched his teeth as he fought against the nausea that started up. It would get easier as the knot unravelled but until then he would just have to bear it. He reached for the knot-

Kimihiro flinched as something touched the back of his neck.

"Does it help?" Doumeki was settling himself on the floor next to him, laying a hand on the back of Kimihiro's neck.

Kimihiro was unable to reply. After the chill of the room, Doumeki's hand was noticeably warm. It was disconcerting and his first instinct was to brush it off. With the suspicions he had about Doumeki's intentions, the intimate touch was suddenly a hundred times more alarming that it would have been otherwise.

He stared at Doumeki's face. There was nothing but concern on Doumeki's face.

Kimihiro felt a wave of embarrassment. Doumeki was merely concerned, trying to do what he could in the situation. There was no ulterior motive. Kimihiro was the one who was thinking about something else-

"It does-" He had to clear his throat. "Thank you." He turned his attention to the knot. It did help. Aside from the warm distraction, the contact had noticeably lessened the discomfort he was feeling at being in such close proximity to the knot. The roiling nausea was suddenly cut off and he no longer felt like he was fighting to keep his thoughts clear.

The nape. Doumeki couldn't have picked a better place to lay his hand. It joined the body to the mind and Doumeki had quietened both. Well, almost- Kimihiro stomped firmly on that thought and reached for the knot, opening his sight fully.

It was like the tangle had suddenly leapt into vibrant being. Each hair was a wire, sending invisible ripples out in waves that flowed out through the walls. Kimihiro was acutely conscious of the lives he held twined together in the unsightly snarl. He could feel the energy in each - the vibrant flows in those which had been harvested from relatively healthy individuals to the more sluggish, flickering ones that teetered uncertainly between life and death. They were exceedingly fragile beneath his fingers and Kimihiro touched them carefully. The dry, brittle lifeless strands in the knot already spoke of those who had lost their lives to the unnatural binding. There were all too many of them threaded through the glossy strands.

It would have been easier to cut the dead strands but Kimihiro didn't dare. There was the all too-real possibility of cutting one of the healthy hairs and that would have killed the person it belonged to. If not worse. He couldn't chance it. And that left the laborious task of unravelling the knot, one hair at a time, strand by strand.

Ryuu leapt down from his shoulder and landed lightly on the carpet. The small dragon daintily jumped over the lines of salt and approached the knot at its centre. Pinning the knot down with one foreleg, the construct carefully grasped a strand of hair and started pulling it free.

Kimihiro steeled himself and selected a strand. It was one of the weaker ones, a flickering line of energy that was a faint pulse beneath his fingers. A faint throb of life beneath the black burning liquid that coated it.

Kimihiro blocked out everything but the thin hair and started working it free.

~x~X~x~

An ache had started up in Doumeki's arm but he ignored it. Kimihiro was showing no discomfort despite having sat on the floor in the same position for well over an hour. His eyes were trained firmly on the hideous tangle of hair, pale fingers moving surely and quickly to untangle the individual strands. The gold dragon worked with a similar intensity, mirroring that of its master.

Their determination was yielding results. Several piles of coiled hair had built up as they were deftly removed. The knot was no longer a braid, but a fraying cord that had thinned dramatically. At least half the strands had been removed, each of them a person rescued from the knot that had fed on their lives.

Doumeki, for his part, did what he could. Watching and keeping his hand on Kimihiro's neck. Every so often holding part of the tangle as Kimihiro instructed. Even those short periods of contact with the thing turned his stomach. The feeling of wrongness, an electric snap that was choked by a smothering sensation, assailed him every time he touched it. He could only imagine what Kimihiro was feeling.

But he seemed to be able to cope with it. When Doumeki had first laid a hand on Kimihiro's neck, the skin under his palm and fingers had been chill and damp like a fever victim's. But that had changed as the knot was pulled apart. Kimihiro's skin had slowly regained its normal feel. The skin beneath his hand was now dry. Soft and warmed by the blood that flowed beneath it.

Doumeki glanced sideways at Kimihiro's face. With the way Kimihiro's short hair was brushing his knuckles and the back of his hand, Doumeki was acutely aware of Kimihiro beside him. Kimihiro, however, was oblivious. Focused on the knot and barely aware of Doumeki at all.

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Doumeki couldn't help lifting a finger to brush the ends of Kimihiro's hair. It felt entirely different from the hair in the knot. Soft and smooth. And cold. The strands had taken on the chill of the room.

The thought made him frown. Though he didn't show it, Kimihiro had to be cold. He felt the cold even when he was wearing several layers and now he was only in shirt sleeves. They should have built up the fire-

There was a faint noise from outside the room.

Doumeki narrowed his eyes, listening. The noises soon resolved into voices. Voices that were growing louder as whoever was in the corridor approached.

Doumeki's hand slid from Kimihiro's neck to his shoulder. Kimihiro's hands stilled as he looked up. Doumeki indicated the door with his eyes and Kimihiro's narrowed. He frowned and then glanced back to the knot. He shook his head and his fingers started moving once more.

The voices had stopped outside the door. They were muffled but Doumeki could make out the voices of a woman and two men. One which Doumeki recognised.

He lifted his hand from Kimihiro's shoulder. Kimihiro sent him a distracted glance but otherwise didn't falter from his self-imposed task. It was up to Doumeki to handle the situation.

There was a click and the door swung open. "Doctor Radford is out at the moment-" It was Sachiko, looking anxious and slightly angry as well. She stopped in surprise when she saw Doumeki standing and facing them. "Mr Arukawa. What are you doing here?" She was frowning, eyes sweeping the room. The frown turned suspicious as she saw the broken glass and burn marks on the carpet where the vial of acid had fallen. The discarded jacket and coat. "And where's Lord Reed?" Her voice had become sharp.

"It's alright." Alastaire slipped into the room. He was followed by a light-haired man with dark eyes, who was almost a head shorter. Alastaire wore an amused smile as he met Doumeki's gaze. "Mr Arukawa is an associate of mine."

The second man summed up the situation with a quick glance. "That will be all, Miss Ozawa." He spoke with quiet courtesy but his voice was firm.

Sachiko glanced at him, her face becoming blank. "I have some things to take care of, Lord Warden. Ring for me if you need anything." She swept past the two men and left the room shutting the door firmly behind her.

There was a moment of silence as the three men stared at each other and then the second man gave a small bow. "Your Highness. Forgive me, but I have to ask why you're here."

Alastaire's arms crossed loosely over his chest and he tilted his head to one side. "I'm curious, too. Though I think I can guess." His eyes had been scanning the room and were now fixed on Kimihiro's discarded coat and jacket. A pale eyebrow rose. Alastaire slowly walked further into the room, his smile widening as he spotted Kimihiro sitting on the floor behind the desk. "Dory. Let me introduce you to Lord Watanuki."

He strolled over, neatly avoiding a few shards of glass, and peered down at Kimihiro. His eyes widened slightly as he spotted Ryuu sitting in the centre of the salt circles. "A dragon?" A crooked smile appeared on Alastaire's face. "But I suppose, I wasn't really expecting you to have a ferret."

Kimihiro's shoulders hunched but otherwise he resolutely ignored Alastaire. The construct, however, was another matter. Ryuu was eyeing Alastaire narrowly, a slice of teeth showing through the dragon's lips.

"I don't think it likes me." Alastaire sounded amused, peering closer. "Strange since Mokona and I get along so well. Maybe-"

"Lord Woodrow." Kimihiro sounded like he was grinding his teeth. "Kindly reserve your comments for another time." Doumeki knew that he was close to the snapping point and was pleased not to be in the firing line.

The second man's dark eyes had been tracking Alastaire as he strolled around the room but they now narrowed. He glanced back at Doumeki. "Your Highness?"

Doumeki stared at him. Dory Ellery. The Chief Warden of the Northern Quarter. He didn't seem to match the reports that Alastaire had been giving. Ellery appeared to take his duty rather seriously. "Lord Watanuki received word that there were problems at the Northern Ward and I accompanied him."

"Problems." The Chief Warden's dark eyes flicked to the burns and glass on the carpet.

"Dr Radford has been experimenting in less-laudable practices." Doumeki ignored the sharp look Alastaire shot him at the words and kept his gaze on the man in front of him.

Ellery's dark eyes flickered. His gaze moved to where Kimihiro still sat on the floor, attempting to ignore Alastaire's annoying presence. "Practices that require Lord Watanuki's skills to counter?" His words were cautiously phrased.

Doumeki's eyes narrowed. He wasn't certain whether it was political caution or something else. "Are you familiar with Lord Watanuki's work?"

"His reputation." If Ellery's words were careful before, they were caution itself now. His manner was polite but his eyes were watchful.

Doumeki was silent for a moment. Ellery had been a controversial appointment when he had been made Chief Warden of the north. A commoner placed in charge of the Quarter which housed the majority of the town houses belonging to the nobility. There had been fears that the new Chief Warden wouldn't be sensitive to the needs of the nobles. His performance over the next few months, however, had put those fears to rest. There had been several delicate situations that had been dealt with neatly, swept under the carpet with barely a murmur. A tactful, intelligent man. But face to face with him now, Doumeki wondered if the nobles hadn't been cleverly deflected. Ellery didn't strike him as the type of man who slavishly attended to those who were ranked above him.

"And what reputation would that be?" The one Kimihiro held among the nobles or the commons.

Ellery met his gaze quietly. "While there are some detractors at court, Lord Watanuki still retains a reputation for honest dealings among the commons."

"You among them?" Doumeki was blunt.

Ellery's brown eyes lowered briefly in acknowledgement.

Doumeki gave a slight nod, finally satisfied.

"Unfortunately our own presence is because of Dr Radford as well," Ellery continued. "His body was found in the business district a few hours ago."

Alastaire had tired of watching Kimihiro and was walking back across the room, eyeing the shelves. "I was with Dory at the time and tagged along in case it was something familiar." He glanced at Doumeki, a ironic smile twisting his lips. "No such luck." He picked up a jar and shook it, watching as the contents sloshed and bobbed. "Dr Radford appears to have been a collector of sorts." He set the jar down in exchange for the skull of a dog. He turned it around in his fingers turning it upside down to peer curiously at its teeth.

Doumeki glanced at him then turned his attention to Ellery. "An accident?" He doubted it.

"No. Murder. A knife-thrust to the gut." Ellery frowned. "The blade was twisted as it was removed - he wasn't going to die fast but he wasn't going to survive either." He stared at the ground. "It would appear a vicious robbery-"

"Or it would have been if there wasn't this." With one last glance at the skull, Alastaire set it down and wandered over. He retrieved a small card from his coat pocket and held it out.

Doumeki accepted it carefully, holding it by the edges. For some reason he didn't want to touch it more than he had to. He studied the small rectangular card. One surface was blank except for a dark stain on one corner that he avoided. Doumeki slowly turned it over to see the other side.

_My compliments._ It was written in a spidery archaic hand that Doumeki recognized. It was the same style of writing that adorned the map in Kimihiro's map room. The same that was used by his ancestors in the earliest of chronicles. It was the writing of someone who had been alive nearly a thousand years ago.

A hand reached out and plucked the card from his grasp.

Doumeki turned to see Kimihiro standing at his side. His face was pale as he stared at the card, his mouth was a taut angry line and his dark eyes were furious. "Damn Him." It was uttered softly but the northern Chief Warden shot him a sharp glance. Slowly and very deliberately, Kimihiro's pale fingers closed around the small card and scrunched it into a twisted ball.

Him. Doumeki knew what that meant. The goryo Kimihiro never named. The one Lady Amita said had ripped open Kimihiro's sight. Except now the spirit was able to kill people and write messages.

Alastaire was eyeing Kimihiro intently as if he'd just done something interesting. "That's evidence in a murder case you know." The slightly mocking edge to his words contrasted with the narrow gaze he gave the other man.

Kimihiro ignored him. He walked to the fireplace where he threw the crumpled card into the flames. The fire seemed to flicker as the thin cardboard hit the flames, then roared up with sudden vigour, devouring the fragile calling card. "It's not going to tell you anything it hasn't already." Kimihiro gave him an angry glance. "And it isn't safe in your hands, Lord Woodrow."

Ignoring them all he turned back to the tangled knot of hair the gold dragon still worked on, sitting down once more.

Alastaire raised an eyebrow at Doumeki. "Should I be grateful or offended?"

"Grateful." Ellery had his eyes on Kimihiro, a slight smile on his face. His eyes slid sideways. "You're lucky it was the card and not you that got burnt."

Alastaire shot him a narrow look. "I never pegged you as a Traditionalist, Dory."

Ellery wasn't concerned. "You never asked. I didn't think you were interested." He turned to Doumeki, ignoring Alastaire's startled look. "I have a team taking care of the body but I'm expecting a pair to join us in searching Radford's office." He glanced at Kimihiro again. "They're two of my more circumspect wardens but-" he paused "-it would be best if Lord Watanuki wasn't seen here like this."

Doumeki agreed. There were already enough rumours floating around, Kimihiro didn't need any more. Especially not when it could be linked to Radford's death.

"I'm nearly finished." Kimihiro's voice had them all turning. He was still bent over the knot and hadn't turned around. Doumeki walked over, ignoring Alastaire's amused glance, to stand behind him. Kimihiro's pale fingers still worked but the strands of hair were more like loosely tangled yarn than a small knot.

Kimihiro worked silently for a few more moments, freeing another large chunk of hair, then finally sat back, shoulders relaxing. The small dragon, which had been gripping the knot, let go and ran across the lines of salt to leap up onto the lord's shoulder. Kimihiro raised a hand to the small dragon, brushing the gold scales with his fingers. He looked tired, near the end of his strength.

Doumeki offered a hand to help him up and Kimihiro took it without protest. The grip he took on Doumeki's hand was somewhat shaky and Doumeki exerted some extra pull to get him on his feet. There was a slight unsteadiness to Kimihiro's movements once he was standing and Doumeki set his hand under his elbow to lend extra support. He could feel the bend of flesh and bone through the thin fabric of Kimihiro's shirt, the faint strained tremor of the muscles under his fingers.

Kimihiro's dark eyes flickered down to his hand but made no protest, giving a faint nod instead.

Alastaire abruptly turned his head to look out the window to hide his grin. The effort was ruined slightly by the ghostly reflection of flashing teeth on the angled glass.

Doumeki ignored him, ensuring that Kimihiro was alright, before removing his grip. If Alastaire couldn't control himself, that was his problem.

Ellery had been silently watching them and his face acquired a slightly resigned cast. He looked like he'd rather be anywhere but where he was at the moment.

"I've done all I can." Kimihiro was looking down at the untidy tangle of hair. The knot had been broken down into several pieces and the pile of retrieved strands were carefully looped and set down in small coils. "I'll take the rest to someone who can deal with it better than I."

Alastaire had turned away from the window, grin shrunk to a mocking smile. "I'm surprised that you can't deal with it yourself." His eyes were cool and Doumeki felt a stab of irritation. Alastaire was pushing again.

Kimihiro's eyes flashed and Ryuu tensed on his shoulder. "Be grateful that I _am_ here, Lord Woodrow." The words were biting, forced out between gritted teeth. "If you had searched this office as you intended, I doubt the outcome would have been one you enjoyed."

Alastaire's eyes fell on the crumpled jacket and coat, the not-so-neat holes that had been burnt into the fabric. "Probably not."

Kimihiro turned away, ignoring him. He glanced at Ellery, eyes flicking over him in a dark blue gaze. "Chief Warden."

Ellery nodded in return. "Lord Watanuki." He glanced over at the hair lying on the floor. "Is there anything else that needs to be done?"

Kimihiro glanced down at the hair set in the centre of the salt circles. "I'll need something to seal it in." He glanced at the line of drawers that lines the wall. "That and the other knots."

Alastaire glanced back at the drawer he stood in front of. "You mean there are more of them?" He gestured at the hair.

"Radford was busy." Kimihiro sounded tired.

Ellery glanced at the shelves. His gaze turned to the cabinet, fixing on the wooden box on its surface near the wired skeleton of the bird. "Would that do?"

Alastaire's eyes widened before settling into a narrow stare. He pinned Ellery with a look like he'd never seen him before. "Am I the only one worried about the tampering of evidence here?"

Kimihiro gave him a sharp glance then walked over to examine the box. "It might." He opened the lid. Gleaming surgical instruments met his gaze and he lifted the top tray to reveal more underneath.

"We already know who killed him, Alastaire." Ellery didn't look concerned. "It's just a matter of uncovering what Dr Radford was up to before he died."

Alastaire crossed his hands over his chest. "And who was this unnamed person?"

"A goryo which has now taken a human body, Lord Woodrow." Kimihiro sounded angry. "He's unnamed for a reason."

Doumeki glanced at him sharply. Kimihiro hadn't explained why he never mentioned the goryo's name.

His eyes narrowed. Just as They remained nameless. There had only one instance where names had been stripped of people in the past during the early period of the empire. The nobles who had had attacked Clow Reed's household. Kimihiro had never hid the fact that the spirits he feared had a grievance against him. Spirits that had been exiled from the capital and remained nameless. Just as the nobles had been in life.

With Hikideshi's hints, Doumeki had suspected that they were one and the same. A suspicion that now solidified into conviction.

Alastaire flicked a brief glance at Doumeki, a slight frown crossing his face. "A human body?"

"Possession, Lord Woodrow." Kimihiro was emptying the box of the last surgical tools. "It may be there is something in this room to identify who He has possessed." His voice darkened. "But I doubt it." He frowned down at the box, pulling a snail pick from his sleeve. "I'll need something to use as a hammer."

Alastaire didn't seem particularly satisfied with that explanation but remained silent. He raised an eyebrow at the request and picked up a palm-sized stone off the cabinet behind him and passed it to Kimihiro.

Kimihiro accepted the stone and examined it for a moment. He set the snail pick in the corner of the box, point down, and brought the stone firmly down on its end. The metal point stuck deep, leaving the snail pick standing in the corner of the box. Kimihiro withdrew another snail pick and set it in the next corner.

It wasn't until all four corners had been filled that Kimihiro turned his attention to the cabinets. He slid open one drawer and carefully picked up a knot of hair and placed it into the box. And then another. As they watched, Kimihiro emptied the drawers one by one, filling the box with braids of hair. Finally he picked up the knot from the circles of salt and the unbound hair that had been freed from it.

Kimihiro set the hair into the box and firmly closed the lid. "My carriage will be outside the gates." His fixed Ellery with an earnest look. "Lord Warden, I would be in your debt if you would personally see this box delivered to my footman."

Ellery glanced from the box to Kimihiro. "I shall see it safely delivered." It was a promise that Doumeki did not doubt.

Alastaire still had his arms crossed over his chest in a lose fold. "And what's going to happen with all of it?"

Kimihiro sent him a wary dark blue glance. "It will be undone, releasing the dead bound to it. And then it will be disposed of." He glanced at the box. "The wardens can no longer deal with such things."

Alastaire raised an eyebrow. "And I suppose that means that our search will be useless?"

Doumeki gave him a warning stare. Kimihiro was in a dangerous mood but had been answering Alastaire's questions. But Alastaire was simply pushing now. Seeing what would give. Doumeki was used to it but Kimihiro wasn't. Alastaire didn't mean any harm by it – it was just how he was.

Kimihiro seemed to realize it as well. His right eye twitched. "Not at all, Lord Woodrow. I leave the search of the office to you and Chief Warden Ellery." His eyes narrowed slightly. "I have no experience in such matters and know my own shortcomings."

Doumeki exchanged a look with Ellery who had become curiously blank-faced. He had wondered how Kimihiro would deal with Alastaire but he seemed perfectly capable of holding his own, despite Alastaire's efforts to provoke him.

It was going to be interesting to see how long they could go without killing each other.

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro took one last glance at the box then determinedly turned away. The matter was in Lord Ellery's hands for the moment and he trusted that the Chief Warden would see the knots safely delivered to Kichirou and Itsuki. Even though Lord Woodrow was an annoyance, he was also in Doumeki's confidence; Kimihiro doubted that he would have been in the man's company if he didn't trust him. Doumeki seemed to think well of Ellery as well and Kimihiro trusted his instincts.

His eyes fell on the sheets of paper he had left on the cabinet and he walked over, leaving the three other men to the conversation they had started. It was warden business and he had nothing to contribute - any suggestions he had he preferred to give to Doumeki and let the Keeper decide what he would act on.

Aside from a glance to find out what he was doing, none of the others seemed to be paying much attention to him. But Kimihiro was aware that Doumeki was keeping an eye on him, keeping him in the periphery of his vision. It didn't annoy him as it should have. Kimihiro was aware that if Doumeki wasn't with him, his presence here would have been met with suspicion and hostility. The situation had been saved by Doumeki's presence. Kimihiro was beginning to see that Doumeki's help was going to be vital in the future.

It wasn't the unpalatable idea it would have been months ago.

All the papers were still on the cabinets at the skeletal bird's feet. Kimihiro picked up the sheets, carefully collecting them together. These he would not entrust to anyone else. They were too dangerous. As were all the items that had come from His hands. But where Kimihiro had disposed of the calling card, he was going to keep the instructions that had been given to Radford. Hikideshi might be able to garner some information from them where he could not.

The hair would go to Yuuko. The items connected with death that she had warned him of.

Kimihiro's gaze shifted to the empty sockets of the bird's skull, papers held in his hand. There had been the crow on the grounds when they had arrived. He hadn't been able to see its eyes but he knew what their colour was now. White. The colour of bone and maggots.

He had been keeping watch and known when they had arrived. Whether He had summoned Radford or had already known that he was outside the Ward, He had gotten rid of the physician who was now a liability. Even as Kimihiro and Doumeki were in the hospital. Cutting ties with an endeavour that was no longer useful.

But He hadn't hid that He was involved. _My compliments._ He was flaunting his involvement, _ensuring_ that Kimihiro knew he had been too late. That He was responsible for the state of the hospital. He hadn't sought to take back the book, either.

The book.

Kimihiro picked it up. He suspected it had come from the private collection of the Northern Keeper. If he was right, its presence suggested that the problems didn't end at the hospital but extended into the heart of the Ward itself. Books couldn't walk themselves out of libraries.

He suddenly realized that Doumeki wasn't the only one watching him. Lord Woodrow was staring at him, eyes on the book and folded papers Kimihiro held. It was clear that he disapproved, but aside from a few mocking comments he hadn't really objected. Kimihiro had to wonder why. Was it because of Doumeki or something else?

Lord Woodrow's eyes rose and their gazes met. The mocking smile that Kimihiro was starting to hate broke across his face. It widened at the expression he wore and then the man was turning his attention back to Doumeki, a small smile still on his lips.

Kimihiro grit his teeth. The man was a one of the most infuriating people he had met. It was hard to believe that he was Doumeki's cousin. Doumeki had no manners and limited socials skills but Kimihiro had come to see that was a result of an appalling blend of personal disposition and poor education. It was just the way he was. Lord Woodrow, however-

Kimihiro's eyes narrowed. The man was exactly the type who had made society a misery for the short period he had been in circulation. Prodding and poking for weaknesses, amused at everything and never standing still to state a position. All jokes and masks without revealing who he really was. Someone who didn't stand for anything.

Kimihiro found he was clenching his cane so hard the silver head cut into his hand. He consciously relaxed his grip and scanned the room looking for a distraction.

His jacket and coat still remained where they had been thrown to the floor. Kimihiro walked over, his boots making small crunching noises as he stepped on some fragments of glass. He tucked the books and papers under one arm and bent down to pick up the discarded garments.

It was immediately clear they were ruined. The acid had sprayed across his back, eating through the gold and green silk embroidery of the coat. The river motif had been guttered, only a few reed heads and water ripples remaining unscarred. Holes and half-melted pathways had scoured most of the scene away and cut clear through the thick fabric. But that was in part what had saved him. A few precious seconds that had allowed him to escape unscathed.

He eyed the jacket. It bore less damage but it, too, was beyond repair. The once-bright leaves were half-melted blurs, small holes bored through the fabric beneath. Another outfit ruined. At this rate he would have to see Yuuko about expanding his wardrobe. The thought made him wince. Yuuko would likely delight in the task. Maybe he could make do. But he knew that he wouldn't be able to stay in the mansion as he had once done. And that meant he needed the clothes that were acceptable. Most which had once fitted that description, he had grown out of years ago.

Kimihiro retrieved the pocket watch from his jacket. It was unscathed and he brushed an absent thumb over its surface. It was cold and smooth, devoid of the dragon design. "Ryuu." He said it softly, a quiet command.

The construct had been sitting quietly on his shoulder but now it ran down his arm to the watch. The small dragon settled on the watch's surface and slowly sank down, becoming one with the metal. The pull of power, reduced to a tiny trickle, finally stopped altogether.

Kimihiro absently rubbed a hand over his chest as if trying to dull the ache that remained. Every breath was a painful reminder of how much power Ryuu had used. He felt strange; hollow as if the energy he had expended had taken something with it. It was suddenly cooler, too, as if the effort to feed the dragon had distracted him from the chill. He was now aware of how cold the room was, small shivers starting to run through his body.

He frowned down at the coat and jacket. It was cold in the office. It was going to be freezing outside. And there was the proper appearance he had to have when he visited Lord Durham's substitute. Kimihiro's eyes narrowed, his anger flickering to life again. He was going to have to speak with the northern Keeper-

A warm weight settled on his shoulders. It took Kimihiro a few seconds to realise it was a coat and that Doumeki was standing behind him, the fine embroidery of pines on his jacket revealed. It was Doumeki's coat.

"It's cold." Despite his words, Doumeki didn't look cold. "You can't go out without a coat."

Kimihiro glanced over to see that Lord Ellery had taken hold of the box and Lord Woodrow was starting across the room towards the desk. The conversation was finished. And now Doumeki's full attention was on him again, noticing his embarrassing shivers.

Lord Woodrow looked over and raised an eyebrow, flashing a grin.

Kimihiro flushed. His jacket and coat were ruined but to go out in shirtsleeves would spark unwanted attention. And while Doumeki was a bit taller - only a bit, though - the fit was good enough. It was also warm from Doumeki's body, a welcome change from the chill that had permeated the room, despite the fire. It made Kimihiro a bit uncomfortable, though. For Doumeki to give him his coat-

The ramifications of what he'd done suddenly hit home. For the last few hours Kimihiro had forgotten the etiquette that was required but now it all came rushing back. He couldn't wear Doumeki's coat. The social implications aside - and Kimihiro was grateful that Doumeki had worn a relatively innocuous coat today - he couldn't leave him in his jacket. It wasn't proper for _Doumeki_ to go out without wearing a coat. "But-"

Lord Woodrow had paused by the desk and was watching them with a look of growing amusement. He suddenly took off his coat and threw it to Doumeki, who caught it easily with one hand. "Take it before Lord Watanuki has a fit." He gave Doumeki a considering look. "It won't kill you to wear something with a bit more style, either."

Kimihiro glared at him, resenting his intrusion but not quite willing to descend to verbal sparring. He didn't have the energy to deal with Lord Woodrow at the moment.

But Doumeki's cousin had turned his attention back to the desk. He was eyeing the skull, the pile of dark dirt and the folded handkerchief, a curious expression on his face. One of his hands moved as if he was about to pick it up and examine it like had the bottles spread around the room.

Kimihiro darted forward, throwing down his ruined clothes on the desk even as he snatched up the skull. "Lord Woodrow," the words were said between gritted teeth. "Though the concept is probably foreign to you, the common practise is to show respect for the dead." He set the skull on his coat and carefully picked up the handkerchief-wrapped bones, placing them on the ruined garment as well.

"I was only curious." The man was wearing that amused smile again.

Kimihiro's eyes narrowed, hand clenching around the watch he still held. Lord Woodrow was making fun of him now.

Doumeki speared his cousin with an unamused gaze. "See to it that they're delivered to the Southern Ward. I have rites to perform."

Alastaire raised an eyebrow. "And where are you going?" He was already starting to look through the papers on the desk.

Doumeki slid a sidelong gaze to Kimihiro. "The shrine."

Kimihiro slipped his arms into the sleeves of his borrowed coat, buttoning it to hide the fact he wasn't wearing a jacket, and slid the papers and book into one pocket even as he settled the watch into the other. He trusted that Lord Woodrow would follow Doumeki's orders. He was determined to see Lord Durham. He wanted to know what had happened at the Northern Ward for things to have gone so horribly wrong.

~x~X~x~

In the early 1900s there was a practise in Victorian society where mourning jewellery was made from the hair of the deceased. Quite beautiful objects that carried a deep sentimental value, a link between the dead and the living. Naturally enough, it was a custom too intriguing to ignore. Of course, it got a bit twisted as usual.


	63. False Physician IX

ENTWINING FATES:

FALSE PHYSICIAN

IX

The second enclosure of the Northern Ward was marked by a sudden the rise in the land. As soon as they passed through the second gate, the cobbled streets suddenly steepened as the path led up to the shrine. Unlike the Southern Ward, the complex was distributed between the second and innermost enclosures: the main hall and outlying buildings open to public in the second enclosure; the innermost sanctum and the household of the Northern Keeper in the third. Those that sought the shrine had to climb the steep hill to reach the shrine complex at the summit.

Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro. He had taken a tight grip on his cane and the metal tip was thrust into the ground at every step for additional support. But other than that, there was no sign of weakness in his pale face, only a fierce determination. Kimihiro was in a temper and the Northern Keeper was in for an earful.

But Doumeki kept an eye on him, ready to lend a hand at a moment's notice. Kimihiro had used up most his reserves attending to the knot of hair and Doumeki suspected it was mostly will power that kept him moving now.

The second enclosure had once contained the homes of those who worked at the hospital, physicians and students alike, as well as those who served the household of the northern Keeper. But this had changed in recent years. Most of the doctors and nurses who worked at the hospital now lived outside the Northern Ward and the number of people who served the Keeper's household had fallen. The sale of the shimme bloodline years before to Lord Grantham had reduced the stable staff drastically and it had only been the first of a myriad of changes that led to a reduction of servants. The result was that half of the buildings they walked past were quiet, either not in use or abandoned. It gave the area an uncomfortably derelict atmosphere.

The street they walked now was curiously empty. The lack of people bothered Doumeki. Compared to the day when his grandfather had brought him to the shrine, the crowd was thin and spare. For one of the cardinal Wards, there were few people. There were a number of pilgrims walking up the path in front of them, a small handful who were slowly returning from the shrine. Common people all, who turned to watch the two men who walked past, eyes wide at the unlikely appearance of the two noblemen striding quickly up the path to the shrine.

Outside the auspicious days, the nobles who visited the shrine were usually of the older generation, soberly dressed lord or ladies who came to the shrine to make an offering for their loved ones in the hospital. Occasionally there was the odd young grieving couple, but the days when gaggles of fashionably-dressed young lords and ladies flocked to the shrine were over. Two smartly-dressed noblemen advancing on the shrine in an evident hurry was a rare sight.

The only other people besides pilgrims were the merchants. Half of the small stalls that lined the avenue leading to the shrine were closed but a number still had their wares displayed. Exotic fabrics, brightly-painted fans and similar wares were exhibited in hopes of catching the eye of those who came to visit the shrine. More common, however, were the offerings bought to be left at the temples; scarlet windmills and multi-coloured pennants sold to be planted on the shrine grounds spun and fluttered in the breeze. A number of shop-owners peered at them curiously from open doors. They didn't say anything, though, simply watched them pass.

But not all the people they encountered were so blasé. One elderly woman who was making the trek down the hill eyed them with frank curiosity as they passed. She took one look at the cane Kimihiro held and abruptly stopped, starting to talk excitedly to the younger woman who held her arm.

Doumeki turned to look at them as they passed but Kimihiro didn't even slow. They left the two women staring after them, having stopped on one side of the path. Even as he watched a shopkeeper walked out onto the street and the old woman started talking to him, gesturing after them with one hand.

If Kimihiro had intended anonymity, Doumeki suspected he'd failed.

Several minutes later they reached the end of the path. Three tiers of steps led up to the wide red gate marking the entrance to the shine complex. Kimihiro's steps had slowed somewhat but he refused the help Doumeki offered and grimly ascended the steep steps. He paused at the top, cane set on the pavement before the gate, staring up at the bright red beams. A braided rope hung from the top crossbar, small pennants hanging down to flutter in the breeze.

"At least there haven't been any changes here." The quiet remark was edged with anger.

"Did you expect there to be?" Doumeki hadn't gotten that impression. The hospital was one thing but the shrine itself another.

A dark blue gaze speared him. "After the hospital, it was a possibility." Kimihiro started walking again, gripping the cane by its shaft rather than the head.

Doumeki frowned at the sight. Kimihiro had needed the cane on the long walk to the shrine but the way he held it now made it an accessory once more. He was trying to hide any sign of weakness, but it was still obvious to Doumeki that he was tired. His steps were slow, the flaring anger blunted. Doumeki didn't say anything but kept close as they started into the shrine, there in case Kimihiro stumbled.

The shrine complex followed the contour of the hill on which it sat. The long climb to the shrine gates now subsided into a wide curving path that wound around the side of the hill to connect various buildings that were part of the sacred complex. The path passed various small shrines, all of them wooden structures in small groves of tall pines and brown-leaved maples, a series of fukinagashi (1), ceremonial pennants with long thin streamers, planted on either side of the shrine. There was also a series of small lookouts that were placed to either side of the shrines, half-hidden by the pines and the shrine itself yet open to the wind which was almost a constant force at this height. Jizo statues (2) adorned with red bibs sat in the shadows, the pinwheels placed in front of them a multitude of flashing colours. They created a steady whirring as the wind turned their blades, a soft sound that grew nearly thunderous in the silence as the wind strengthened. It was an eerie sound that followed them along the path even when the statues themselves had passed from sight. The fluttering of cloth on the wind was a constant sound as well. Fukinagashi which had been purchased from the stalls lining the path leading up the shrine were placed at various points along the path where they would catch the wind.

Gradually the path merged into a series of covered wooden walkways edging the central shrines. The shrines were perched on the side of the hill and the walkways connected to them were supported by a scaffold of thick beams, creating the effect of a path through the sky. Large ornate lanterns hung from the beams above, unlit and unmoved by the wind that swept in through the rails. They drew the eye to the gilded ward lines that traced over the wooden beams, the small gold dragons that perched in the junction of the massive timbers. Lines that appeared to move and flicker behind the faint trails of smoke rising from the bronze censers below. The same wind that stretched the thin strands of smoke was flapping their coats even as it drifted the cleansing smoke over them. It was a strange passage; dark yet light, sheltered yet open to the wind.

Kimihiro stopped for a moment to peer into the main hall, glancing down briefly at the pairs of shoes that were left tucked neatly beside the doorway. A young couple were bowing in front of two sticks of burning incense but otherwise the large space was empty, lanterns sending flickering lights across the tatami mats and solid beams that held up the roof.

Doumeki took the opportunity to lay a hand against one of the open large bronze-plated doors. He concentrated on trying to sense the structure. A soft warm, solid strength was what he got. Not quite like the feel of the Southern Ward but close. A silent protection that remained unbroken as far as he could tell.

He opened his eyes to find Kimihiro staring at him. The harsh lines of his face had softened into a faint smile. "Anything out of the ordinary?"

"It feels normal." As far as he could tell, anyway.

Kimihiro nodded. "The shrine appears intact." His expression became grim again. "But the question is why the hospital is in such a state." He started walking again, moving out onto the veranda that skirted around the main hall. There was a thick red braided rope strung halfway across it, restricting access to the wooden walkway beyond. Kimihiro paused for a moment, staring at the cast bronze dragons crouched to either side, mouths open in threatening snarls, then grasped the rope and promptly ducked under it. He stared back impatiently when Doumeki didn't immediately follow, still holding up the rope. "Well?"

Doumeki slowly ducked under the braided rope, casting a gauging glance at Kimihiro as he let the rope fall once more. It was a barrier, a division of the shrine that was as strong as a wall. A division that divided public worship from the sacred sanctuary restricted to priests and the Keeper himself. Doumeki wasn't particularly bothered breaching it, though warnings from his grandfather were chief in his mind, but Kimihiro's casual disregard had caught him by surprise.

Kimihiro caught his gaze. His look grew slightly defensive, as if Doumeki's reluctance had awoken his own trepidations. "It's not the time to be observing political niceties." He turned away and started down the walkway, steps somewhat forceful.

With one last glance at the snarling bronze dragons, Doumeki followed.

Instead of meandering around the slope like the public path, the walkway twisted and started to climb in a series of stone steps. Soon the shrine was hidden from sight behind them, obscured by pines. Only the flap of pennants and the whir of pinwheels remained to tell them they were still on the shrine grounds. By the time they reached the end, Kimihiro had slowed and was once more using the cane for support.

The narrow path finally ended in another sheltered walkway that formed the veranda of a large wooden building. A priest was waiting for them in the shadow of one the large upright beams and he bowed as they approached. "Your Highness, Lord Watanuki." He straightened, face revealing nothing but perfect composure. "Lord Durham sent me to escort you."

Kimihiro's eyes had widened slightly at his name but they were now cool. "Lord Durham is expecting us?"

The man bowed once more. "If you would follow me." He gestured to the walkway behind him. Kimihiro sent Doumeki a brief consulting glance then nodded.

They were led past a series of outer halls, further into the sacred complex. Finally they came to a large landing. The view from the large balcony looked back onto the complex they had just travelled through, glimpses of the path and hospital below peeking through the greenery that surrounded the shine.

A table and several chairs had been set up. A neatly-dressed man wearing an informal coat and jacket was seated at the table, a book set open on the flat surface. A small swirl of leaves was turning in an agitated spiral on the table. It darted forward and suddenly the pages of the book were turning backwards, a distraught flutter. They finally stopped, a small pile of leaves holding the pages open.

"Knot. I wonder what that means..." The man was peering near-sightedly at the open page.

"It's a warning." Kimihiro's voice was sharp. He had stopped several steps away, his face set.

The swirling leaves on the table died and suddenly Kimihiro's hair was whipping wildly around his pale face. The wind danced around him in a tight spiral that had the borrowed coat flapping around him. Kimihiro remained unmoved by the sudden enthusiastic assault, eyes fixed on Lord Durham. "A warning your cousin should have heeded." The anger in his voice was barely checked.

The Northern Keeper had turned at Kimihiro's words. Lord Kenneth Durham was a thin, unremarkable man. His short thinning light brown hair hung around his face in wispy strands, giving him the appearance of an absent-minded scholar. The spectacles perched on his nose only strengthened the impression. But the eyes behind the lenses were sharp, missing nothing.

Lord Durham was unmoved by the harsh words. "Lord Watanuki." He nodded. His gaze moved Doumeki and he gave a deeper nod of his head. "Your Highness."

The funnelling wind circling Kimihiro flared. It left him in a sharp gust, sweeping back to the table again. Once more the pages flipped through, a fast flutter, before staying open on one page. The leaves lifted from the table then flowed up and over the balcony in a fast stream, trailing down into the valley below.

Lord Durham peered down at the open page. He was still for a moment then slowly shut the book. His gaze returned to Doumeki and Kimihiro. "Perhaps you'd indulge me by hearing me out." He gestured to the chairs sitting on the opposite side of the table. There were two, Doumeki noticed. The lord really had been expecting them.

Kimihiro was still for a long moment but then he nodded, somewhat stiffly. He crossed the few feet that separated them and pulled out a chair. He sat, setting his cane against the table and Doumeki took the other one, glancing briefly at Kimihiro's pale face.

"Galen." Lord Durham glanced at the priest who was standing to one side silently. "Ask Lady Durham to arrange some refreshments."

Kimihiro made an abortive movement at Doumeki's side but made no comment about the lord's attempt to treat the situation like a civilized afternoon tea.

After one last glance at the two visitors, the priest bowed and retreated silently.

Doumeki watched him go thoughtfully. There was no hesitation, no resentment. It was not the action of someone who had suddenly been placed under the orders of a man he was unfamiliar with or had any doubts. Lord Philip Durham's departure had appeared abrupt, his replacement a doubtful prospect. But now that they were here a different situation was presented. It was almost as if the man seated across from them had been in the position for longer.

He turned back to find Lord Durham watching him, eyes slightly narrowed in a considering look. The man nodded, as if some suspicion had been confirmed, then turned his attention to Kimihiro.

"I'm sure you're aware of the current situation. My cousin is said to be away on a vacation, seeking out the healing waters of the hot springs." He stared at Kimihiro who was sitting with a stillness that suggested impatience more than any fidgeting could convey. "But that's not entirely the case."

Lord Durham glanced down at the closed book on the table and frowned slightly. "It is no secret that the Durham line has experienced financial problems in recent years. Most of the line's ventures were based along the Kurokawa and when the flood occurred ten years ago, the losses and costs of rebuilding nearly drained the coffers. My cousin was left to raise funds as best he could to support the Ward and the household." He glanced out off the balcony, diverted by a bird that shot past in a shallow dive.

"The sale of the shimme stock to Lord Grantham." Doumeki inserted. He was beginning to see the connections between incidents that had seemed unrelated at the time.

Lord Durham nodded. "Lord Grantham approached my cousin with a generous offer, considering the circumstances. As the shimme were no longer needed in the function of the Ward, he agreed with the transaction. The sale did much to counter the debt that had accumulated." He paused for a moment. "However, it was not sufficient to cover the costs of running the hospital as it had once been."

Kimihiro narrowed his eyes. "The new wings?"

The dark eyes flicked to Kimihiro. "Among other things. When funds had run out, financial backing was provided by the Crown. Her Majesty used her position as lender to force through several conditions. As a result, the administration of the hospital was slowly given over into secular control, the hiring of staff left to officials appointed by the crown." Lord Durham's voice was almost clinical as he described how control of the Ward had flowed out of his cousin's hands. He didn't appear concerned at laying out the situation to the queen's oldest son. "And in turn, all additional wings were built along modern lines." He glanced up at the ward lines that crawled over the beams above them. "With no reminders of the superstitions that kept our forbearers from progress."

Doumeki's left hand was clenched in his lap. He had been aware of his mother's views but he had never known that she had actually exerted her authority in an attempt wrest control of a Ward from its Keeper. It was an aggressive move he hadn't expected and one that made him realize that she wasn't limiting herself to half measures. Despite allowing him to hold the Southern Ward, she hadn't left the other Wards alone.

"But the hospital is still within the Ward's jurisdiction?" Kimihiro wasn't looking at Doumeki but the sublimated anger wasn't directed him.

Lord Durham had caught it, too. He inclined his head, gaze fixed on the Kimihiro, waiting for the question he knew was coming.

"Then why didn't Lord Durham seek to remedy the situation? At least he could have ensured that the hospital was adequately protected." Kimihiro ejected the words forcefully. "The new wards are riddled with gaichu, the patients little more than rotting meat." His eyes flashed. "As Keeper of the Northern Ward, it was in Lord Durham's hands to protect them from such a fate."

Brown eyes narrowed but otherwise Lord Durham didn't react to the angry display. "You would have to ask my cousin to get an answer but unfortunately he is not here." He continued before Kimihiro could speak. "From what I hear, he battled with reoccurring episodes of illness that prevented him." He stared out back to the shrine, voice softening. "But I doubt it was a natural illness."

There was a small shocked silence. "Are you suggesting-" Kimihiro sounded deeply disturbed.

"Philip married because of infatuation." Lord Durham looked somewhat regretful. "It was only later that he realized the nature of the woman he had married but he was too honourable to subject her to the dishonour of divorce. Consequently he endeavoured to support her yet limit her malice." He met Kimihiro's stare head-on. "Kathrina is a ruthless woman, Lord Watanuki. In recent years she has developed interests that clash with the traditional management of the Ward. It would not surprise me if she had obtained something to make him more-" he paused, "-pliable."

Doumeki studied his face closely. "That's a serious accusation." Despite their current fall in popularity, Keepers were still public officials as well as highly-ranked nobles in their own right. An assault on any was regarded as an attack on the city.

"It is." Lord Durham met his gaze calmly. "And I have no evidence. None that would prove adequate for prosecution." There was a whirring noise and he looked at the small bird alighting on the rail of the veranda. "But from what I have heard and witnessed, I have no doubts." Still watching the bird, he reached into a pocket and withdrew a small paper bag. "It may not excuse his dereliction of duty, but it does provide somewhat of an explanation." There was another whir, a flutter of wings, and two more birds landed on the rail near the first.

Lord Durham slowly stood, the small paper bag in hand as he walked around the table to approach the rail. "Several months ago, Philip approached me about the succession." He stopped a step or two away from the small birds, which had fluffed up against the cold wind that ruffled their feathers, and poured the contents of the bag onto the rail. A trail of small seeds spilled free and the small birds immediately darted forward and started eating, unconcerned by the lord's close presence.

"I was surprised at first." Lord Durham watched the birds for a moment before returning to his seat. "I am a scholar first, rather than a man of business. Nor do I have the skills traditionally required of a Keeper." He said it with the matter-of-factness that came with someone who knew well their limitations. "But I agreed when Philip asked me to become his heir. Knowing what was at stake, I could not refuse him."

"Your current role as Keeper isn't temporary." It would explain things. Lord Durham's abrupt departure of the city, the comfortable way the man in front of them now wielded control over the Ward.

The lord inclined his head. "The transfer of titles was carried out little over a month ago. Secretly of course." His eyes lowered the paper bag he had crumpled in his hand. "Neither of us wanted to chance an unfortunate action when Lady Durham and her daughter discovered their inheritance had been cut. By the time they return, I intend to have rooted out both their supporters and those of the crown." He cracked a faint smile, clearly looking forward to the event.

Doumeki could see how the man had been overlooked for so long. He appeared dull and unimportant, but he had a keen intellect that made him an implacable force. Doumeki was certain he would be more than up to the task of running the Ward. He glanced aside. Kimihiro was staring down at the table. It was hard to tell what he was thinking.

There was a faint rattle of porcelain. "Kenneth?"

All three of them turned. A woman was standing on the walkway where the priest had disappeared. After a closer look Doumeki realized he had seen her before. She was the woman who had been sitting in the waiting room of the hospital. No longer wearing the green dress, she looked healthy.

"Sayuri." Lord Durham broke into warm smile that transformed him completely. He turned back to his guests. "Your Highness, Lord Watanuki, my wife, Sayuri."

Lady Durham curtseyed, "It's a pleasure to meet you both." Her voice was low and slightly husky. She slowly walked over and started laying out the tea service onto the table before them. In a matter of moments cups had been placed before each of them and the teapot was set on the table. With another curtsey, she turned and left.

Lord Durham watched her leave. "Sayuri has some skill in divining. She has been investigating the hospital on my behalf." A small smile touched his lips. "No one recognized her." He picked up the cup of tea that had been placed before him. "While not as skilled as some, her advice has been invaluable."

So the lady had been carrying out her own investigation of the hospital. Doumeki picked up his cup and took a sip. It seemed that Lady Dexter hadn't been the only one worried about the situation.

Kimihiro was silent for a moment. His anger had fallen as the new Keeper spoke and his voice was now quiet. "Have you consulted with the second line?"

Lord Durham lifted his teacup. "I've sent several letters but received no reply. As matters stand," he glanced out to the hospital below, "I have chosen to remain on the grounds to bolster the integrity of the Ward."

Kimihiro's mouth tightened. "A wise move under current circumstances. A goryo has entered the city."

The northern Keeper's eyes widened, the first sign of alarm that he had shown since his privacy had been interrupted. He studied Kimihiro's face for a moment and then set his cup back onto the table. "One of Them?"

Kimihiro cast him a sharp look, dark and questioning.

Lord Durham smiled thinly. "I know of only a few occurrences that could draw you from your estates, Lord Watanuki. And a move by those traitors is at the top of the list." An odd look of respect crossed his face. "It's been more than nine hundred years. Their persistence is impressive. Almost laudable in a way."

So he had been right. Though how Lord Durham knew of the situation-

"But their intentions are not." Kimihiro's anger, which had lowered to a quiet simmer, snapped back into his face. He retrieved the small book from the pocket of the jacket he wore and set it precisely on the table. "I found this in the office of one of the doctors. Dr Radford."

"Radford." Lord Durham's eyes had narrowed. "He was appointed five years ago. A fine physician. No complaints whatsoever. I've been keeping an eye on him." He picked up the book and opened the cover. His eyebrows lowered immediately as he read the inscription inside and then he was quickly turning to the title page.

"He was practicing within the hospital, using the patients." Kimihiro was watching the northern Keeper closely. "I have reason to believe that he had been in contact with the goryo."

Durham's eyes widened briefly before narrowing. "This changes things. I had intended to move softly but the situation leaves little choice." He shut the book and set it on the table. "It seems that I will have act sooner than I had planned." Only the slightest annoyance in his voice betrayed his disquiet. "Originally I had intended to wait before revealing that the role I now hold is permanent." His lips thinned a fraction. "To have hidden the succession will already cause problems with the crown and the other Wards." Succession was up to a Keeper but usual courtesy dictated at least notification of the change. Lord Durham gave the impression that courtesy had its place but in this case, it wasn't a high priority. "I had hoped to have cemented my position further before I revealed the truth."

The Keepers held strong sway in court. While they didn't have as much power as they once had, it was still enough to influence the politics of court. Without their backing, Lord Durham was likely to find his authority challenged at every turn. Doumeki had been in a similar situation when he had first taken up the Southern Ward. The other Keepers had refrained from outright support until his mother had finally acceded defeat. The only difference was that he'd had the full support of the all the Ward's staff. Doumeki frowned. "What backing do you have?"

Lord Durham glanced at him. "I have the support of most of the priests and acolytes at the shrine. The household staff is another matter. Many of the loyalties are held by Lady Durham and my intrusion is resented." His gaze fell on the small book sat on the table. "I was content to let it be for a while, but it seems that I'll have to weed out those whose loyalties are questionable." His eyes narrowed and suddenly the cool scholar was replaced by a man who was used to wielding authority.

He picked up his cup and took a sip. "With the help of my wife and those aware of the situation, I have been investigating the hospital." He glanced over to Kimihiro. "Unfortunately there are problems beyond what you uncovered today. A nurse in the one of the new wards approached me little over a month ago." He lowered his eyes to his cup, staring down at the steaming tea. "She had concerns about the some of the patients under her care." His eyes darkened. "And the treatment they were receiving."

"I discovered that there had been a number of admittances that were made under dubious circumstances." His eyes narrowed. "After the plague, laws were passed to ensure the admittance of ill individuals so the illness would be contained. In the intervening years, this has been applied to anyone who shows symptoms of the plague." His fingers moved over handle of the teacup. "No one wants a new epidemic. Not after what happened."

Doumeki could still remember the panic of those days. It wasn't hard to see how the laws had been passed.

Lord Durham met his gaze. "In the last three years, several hundred people have been brought to the hospital under that law." His eyes grew cold. "And I have reason to believe that at least half of them were admitted wrongly and had no need for the treatments they were given."

There was a chink. Doumeki turned to see Kimihiro unsteadily placing his teacup on his saucer. His face was pale, a poor mask for the shock and aversion that showed through. "They weren't released?" His voice was slightly unsteady.

Lord Durham shook his head. "Not in any health." His eyes flicked to Doumeki, a measuring glance before returning to Kimihiro. "A number died and those that were released were-" he hesitated "-changed." His gaze returned to the balcony, to the small birds still feeding on the rail. "They were pronounced cured but docile and gutted would be a better description." He was silent a moment. "From what I have been able to gather, many of them were able to see the unseen."

A movement at his side had Doumeki's attention turning to Kimihiro. He had paled further, dark eyes wide, one white-knuckled hand clutching his chair arm. Doumeki frowned and turned back to Lord Durham. "Intentionally?"

Lord Durham met his gaze squarely. "I believe so. There were too many for it to be coincidence." His eyes lowered to his tea. "I've already dealt with the matter-" He frowned. "Lord Irving had a certain object in his possession, which has been retrieved." The way he said the last word suggested the methods used hadn't been entirely legal. "I thought it might have been the result of bad chance but now I'm not so certain." His eyes narrowed. "It might have found its way into his hands through deliberate action rather than chance."

Lord Irving. He was chief magistrate of the Northern Quartern. Any enactment of the containment law would have required his signature and seal. The situation might have been taken care of but the repercussions would have to be dealt with. As would the chink in the armour of the Northern Quarter.

"Deliberate action." Kimihiro's voice was strange, weariness mixed with anger. "It's not the first time an item has shown up where it shouldn't."

Lord Durham stared at him. "I see." He was silent for a long moment, staring sightlessly as he took another sip of tea. "It will take months, if not years, to build the Ward up to its full strength. At the moment the shrine holds but the hospital and the outer enclosures are wide open." He was almost clinical in his assessment. "But on a temporary basis, defences could be raised in a matter of weeks."

It would require continuous maintenance of the inner shrine through harae (3), ceremonies of purification, and saikai (4), abstinence and purification, for the Keeper himself. It meant purification of the soul through meditation, rituals and shugyo (5). And then there was the physical purification of the body, inside and out. Cleansing with salt and water, fasting, eating special foods and sexual abstinence. It was a demanding process that Doumeki only resorted to in the course of certain rituals but Lord Durham would have to keep it up for the duration. It wasn't a course to be taken lightly. Lord Durham, however, appeared undaunted.

"There are the discarded guardian statues." Kimihiro had been staring into his cup for the last few minutes but now looked up. His anger had vanished replaced with a quiet thoughtfulness. "Lady Browning has amassed a large collection. If you were to anchor the walls with them, they would bolster the wards. It's not the best solution," he grimaced, "but at least it would no longer allow free entry to every supernatural entity that wonders by." He fixed the Northern Keeper with a solemn stare. "I'll send a letter of introduction to Lady Browning." His lips twitched faintly. "I'm sure she'll be happy to select a number." He paused, a dark look flashing through his eyes. "But you'll need a practitioner of exceptional skills to set them into the boundary wards."

A faint look of surprise showed on Lord Durham's face. Doumeki got the impression that he hadn't been expecting advice from Kimihiro. The lord set his cup down. "How exceptional?"

Kimihiro eyes shifted slightly. "Of the highest rank. I would suggest you contact Lord Kuroda." Doumeki noticed that he didn't offer to send an introductory letter as he had for Lady Browning.

"As for the hospital-" Kimihiro frowned, his eyes revealing a flash of anger before he lowered them. "How many pieces of the Gozen service do you have?"

"Thirty-five." Lord Durham was watching Kimihiro intently now.

Doumeki was, too. He caught the brief flash of surprise that crossed Kimihiro's face.

"I have the rest." Kimihiro's voice grew more confident as he spoke. "If you exorcise the gaichu that have taken root and house the service in the hospital, displaying the pieces in all various wings, it will be as if it was warded. It will work as a temporary measure." He glanced up at the Northern Warden, a note of warning entering his voice. "But only carry out exorcisms in the new wings. There's a spirit in the old building who regards it as her territory. It's safest to leave her be."

Lord Durham had a thoughtful expression on his face. "Thank you, Lord Watanuki. I appreciate your aid."

Kimihiro nodded, somewhat awkwardly, in acknowledgement.

There was a whir of wings and Lord Durham glanced over to see the last bird departing. "With one of Them in the city, not only the Northern Ward would be their target." He glanced back at them both. "When did you intend to hold the festival?"

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro was filled with frustrated anger. He had been geared up for a confrontation with the Northern Keeper only to find that he couldn't in conscience indulge in the urge. The faltering of the Northern Ward hadn't been negligence as much as deliberate sabotage, the former Keeper entangled in malice from several quarters and stretched thin because of them.

And his replacement was already taking steps to reverse the situation. Despite his lack of any supernatural gift, Kimihiro was hopeful Kenneth Durham would be able to handle the duties of Keeper. The man had the cool intelligence and strong determination to act with the assets he did have. And judging from the scene they had walked in on, he had already discovered a way to interact with the world he couldn't see. Kimihiro suspected the hollow bamboo pipes set along the rail were another way of communicating with spirits. They were set so that the wind blowing onto the veranda had no effect - only a wind spirit's deliberate passage would sound them. Kenneth Durham's matter-of-fact acceptance of the supernatural world allowed him to approach the second world from an entirely unique perspective. One which might help them all in the days to come.

The fact that he had no real close ties to his cousin was also in his favour. Even though they were cousins, the current Keeper was practically an unknown figure in court. That would be to his advantage when dealing with the problems that he faced. He had no ties to the mistakes of the past, though whether it would be a disadvantage in facing Him, they were yet to see.

Him. Kimihiro now knew where he had turned his attention. He had abandoned the south for the north. Unlike its counterpart in the south, the Northern Ward didn't have the fortress-like defences to deal with a major supernatural incursion. Its role was to be open to the people, to protect them from the dangers within rather than without. To accept life even as the Southern Ward carefully enclosed death.

He had perverted that intention, turning the Ward against itself. Turning a place of healing into a horror where the sick were subjected to further injury and those who were recovering had their strength sapped. Killing them. Their deaths used to further break the protections of the Northern Ward even as it added to the power gathered by their stolen hair.

A power that had gone somewhere. What remained in the knots Kimihiro had found were only the remnants, what had been gathered recently. The rest had already been transferred elsewhere. And Kimihiro had a dreadful certainly into whose hands it had flowed.

He had found a human form and taken full advantage of that fact. Passing out barbed gifts. Gifts that wrecked havoc on those who received them, small stones that started avalanches of misfortune that spread to touch hundreds.

And killing. Killing the young girl at Highbridge, using her remains to taint the land in an attempt to kill the park's guardian spirit. Disposing of the physician who was no longer useful and wringing one last use out of his body in a mocking salute.

He _knew_ that Kimihiro was at the Northern Ward. His crow would have borne the message even as the breaking of the knot would have told him what Kimihiro had uncovered.

Kimihiro feared He wasn't hiding what he'd done because he had already achieved his objective. He was one step ahead and had already moved on, another tactic in play.

And without knowing His intentions, a festival, a ritual cleaning of the entire city, was all that they could do. It wasn't a surprise that Lord Durham had come to the same conclusion. "Summer. Spring at the earliest." When the hours of light outnumbered that of night. And the preparations had been made. When Doumeki was ready. Of course, that was only if they had the support of all four Keepers.

He glanced at Doumeki in question. Doumeki only nodded at his words. But then the festival had been his idea anyway.

"You have my support." Lord Durham said it so baldly that Kimihiro blinked. He hadn't expected such a definite show of support. The north had been the Ward he had been most worried about.

"For what it will give you." Lord Durham's eyes were cool. "I have no influence with west or east and my support might be a hindrance rather than a help." He smiled thinly. "Two upstarts against the two pillars who support the queen."

It was true to a certain extent. Lord Ishiyama had a solid relationship with the crown, through his friendship with the former king and the role the Western Ward played in training of the palace guard and military officers of the empire. Lady Heath had her own close relationship with the queen, a friendship that she had fostered for more than a decade. Kimihiro was aware that both would take some convincing to openly defy the queen's wishes.

He glanced at Doumeki. The prince had a slightly considering look but it was impossible to tell what he was thinking.

"I intend to get the agreement of east and west." Doumeki said it as if the task was simple but Kimihiro knew the quiet words were as good as a vow. If Doumeki said he was going to do something, he was going to do it. No matter what the consequences were.

Doumeki was serious, then. Kimihiro suspected he was but stating his intentions to Lord Durham meant there was no going back. Kimihiro's mouth tightened. It was time to call in a few favours.

~x~X~x~

"It's hard to say who will be more difficult to convince." Doumeki turned to see Kimihiro was staring at him. The gaze was sober, his eyes telegraphing a message that Doumeki couldn't decipher. "But I'm certain that they can be persuaded." The way he said the last word was unsettling, though. Doumeki wondered what plans Kimihiro was formulating.

Lord Durham was silent, eyes on Kimihiro's face. "I'm sure they can." He had picked up on the same tone that Doumeki had.

"Your Grace." Doumeki turned to see the same priest who had guided them had returned. "I apologise for the interruption but the Chief Warden is here to see you."

Lord Durham raised an eyebrow. "Dory?" He caught the looks Kimihiro and Doumeki exchanged. "The Chief Warden has been aiding me in my enquiries." He raised a questioning eyebrow. "Would you like to stay?"

Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro. The dark blue eyes met his then slid away. "We have other pressing business." Alastaire would give him the details later. Right now Kimihiro had something else he wanted to do. He stood and Kimihiro followed suit.

Lord Durham rose with them. "I will do all I can." His eyes met Doumeki's. "When things are settled we can talk again."

Kimihiro was regarding him with an intent look. "I'll have the rest of the Gozen service delivered later in the week."

Lord Durham nodded, "My thanks, Lord Watanuki." His eyes met Kimihiro's firmly. "For all of your advice."

Kimihiro met his gaze for a moment, assessing, and then nodded. "If you need anything more, you know how to contact me."

"I will." Lord Durham smiled, small but genuine. "And I expect you both to call on me again."

There were polite nods all round and then they took their leave. Lord Durham retrieved the two books from the table and departed along the other side of the veranda, presumably towards the Keeper's household located further up the slope.

Doumeki and Kimihiro were guided back to the path the priest had led them along before. They walked back along the walkways behind Galen until the priest finally gestured to a gate marking an unfamiliar pathway. "Follow the path and you'll arrive at the main entrance." He bowed. "Your Highness, Your Lordship." The man turned and disappeared back up the path.

Kimihiro simply stood there for a moment watching him. But then he turned to Doumeki, staring at him with serious dark blue eyes. "Have you spoken to Lady Heath before?" His voice wasn't exactly wary but it was close to it.

"On formal occasions." Often at the side of his mother. "I don't think she likes me." Or at least that was the impression he had got. A cold stare and a few precisely worded phrases had been all he received when he had been interred as Keeper.

Kimihiro didn't appear cheered by his words. "I don't suppose you've asked for an audience?"

"Once. It coincided with a court function." It was a polite but firm message that the Keeper of the East didn't want anything to do with him.

Kimihiro's frown deepened. His mouth suddenly tightened and he pinned Doumeki with a firm gaze. "You'll need her support. I can get you an audience but my influence only extends so far."

But further than his in this regard. "Influence?"

Kimihiro started walking, cane hitting the ground. "There was a time when the Cardinal Wards were tied closely together." There was a current of anger in his voice. "A time when there was no need of secret deals or currying of favour to arrange a festival."

Doumeki was slightly surprised by the anger in his words. Kimihiro didn't usually get worked up by the current state of affairs but he was now.

"Whether Lady Heath remembers that remains to be seen. Hopefully the news of what has happened at the Northern Ward and in the south will help." But he didn't sound entirely confident.

"And if it doesn't?" The path was wide enough for Doumeki to walk at Kimihiro's side and he glanced over to see Kimihiro's face.

A curiously foreboding expression crossed Kimihiro's face. "I'll have to remind her."

Doumeki blinked at the ominous words. Kimihiro had gone beyond anger and into cold threat.

There was silence for a few minutes as they walked along the path.

"Is there something else you have to do here?" Doumeki glanced up at the roof of the shrine buildings visible through the pines on the pathway above them.

Kimihiro's eyes narrowed onto angry blue slits. "No." His mouth was a thin bloodless line. "I need to see Lord Iemura."

The head of the line that supported the Northern Ward. Doumeki wanted to speak with the man himself.

~x~X~x~

1) Pennants as I have described. Borrowing from Tango no Sekku (Children's Day, 5th May) where families with boys erect Koinobori (carp-shaped pennants) in prayer that their children will grow up strong and healthy.

2) Jizo are sculpted stone objects of Japanese folk belief. There are various different types but most are dedicated to the divine protection of children. The ones mentioned here are based on those found at Buddhist temples, guardian _bosatsu_ (a person undergoing religious training to attain Buddhahood) of those who suffer, especially sickly children and pregnant women. Children who have died young, including babies who have been miscarried or aborted, are helped into the next world by Jizo.

3) Harae is a general Shinto term for ceremonies of purification designed to counter misfortune and pollution and restore ritual purity.

4) Saikai is the abstinence and purification undertaken by a participant in a Shinto ritual. There are two levels of abstinence: ara-imi 'rough abstinence' and ma-imi 'true abstinence'. Keepers, Doumeki included, usually maintain the former unless they are preparing for a specific ritual. Lord Durham, however is about to embark on the latter XD

5) There are lots of definitions for shugyo. In this case, I'm refering to the performance of daily tasks to refine and purify the quality of life. It's basically discipline, the striving for technical and personal excellence.

~x~X~x~


	64. False Physician X

ENTWINING FATES:

FALSE PHYSICIAN

X

Unlike his southern counterpart, Lord Iemura had taken up residence within the boundary of the capital. The lord's town house was located within the hub of the Northern Quarter, on the edge of the other noble households that spread out on the skirts of the royal palace. It was of similar design to the other houses on the street but a second glance revealed its unique decorative aspects. Ward lines ran along the walls and round the windows, half-concealed in a series of elegant mouldings. Falcons sat to either side of the wide doors, their wings half-mantled and their heads tilted to pin anyone seeking entrance with a searching stare.

The carriage drew up in front of the elegant establishment and the door opened almost immediately, Kimihiro emerging as soon as the footman had laid his hand on the handle. The lord barely paused once he was on the street but strode up the front steps and rang the bell for entrance. Doumeki had just reached his side when the door opened.

The doorman, a young man with pale hair and dark eyes, stood in the doorway. He looked somewhat surprised to see two gentlemen at his master's door.

"Lord Kimihiro Watanuki to see Lord Iemura." Kimihiro's voice was firm, brooking no interference.

The footman's eyes widened briefly in recognition of the name. His gaze travelled from Kimihiro's pale implacable face to Doumeki's expressionless visage. "I will inform his lordship." He opened the door to allow them entrance, closing it softly behind them as they strode into the foyer. "Please wait here."

Doumeki watched as the man headed towards the staircase then turned his gaze to Kimihiro. During the ride through the Northern Quarter he had been as close to seething as Doumeki had ever seen him. A cold anger that burned slowly, lingering when his fiery temper usually abated. It still remained, evident in his sharp gestures and the quick movement of his eyes.

Kimihiro's eyes now traced over the foyer, lingering on the staircase that the footman had just ascended. The focus of his stare seemed to be the elegantly carved banisters. Cranes and numerous other birds graced the wooden uprights, an elegant tracery of lines that mirrored the guardians which stood guarding the entrance. As with the facade, warding lines also ran along the walls, incorporated into the charming cornice work that had been preserved.

Doumeki's gaze fell to the floor. Unlike the Watanuki mansion, it was bare of wards. It was a simple wooden surface covered by a series of tasteful rugs. While it was clear that Lord Iemura was wary of spiritual incursions, his home lacked the stark paranoid defences of Kimihiro's mansion. The house they now stood in was clearly well-lived in, a place of comfort as much as protection.

He looked up to see that Kimihiro was still staring up at the staircase. "Have you met Lord Iemura before?"

"Once." Kimihiro sent him an edged glance. "I dealt mostly with his father." His voice softened slightly. "Before he died." Kimihiro turned his gaze back to the staircase. "The current lord has been the head of the line for the last few years." The sharp edge that he had gained at the Northern Ward had returned.

Doumeki gave him a sidelong glance. It was clear that Kimihiro was not pleased by Lord Iemura. "And?"

Kimihiro's attention, swung around to focus on him, intent and sharp. Some of the fierceness left his eyes as he met Doumeki's gaze. "I thought he was a worthy successor." His eyes darkened. "But it seems I was wrong."

There was a noise above and they both looked up to see a young man descending the staircase with the aid of a servant. Lord Iemura was a short man, his head only coming to the shoulder of the servant who helped him down the stairs. Despite his olive skin, he had a pallor that gave him a sallow cast. It was clear that he had been ill recently: if his bad colour wasn't enough, the way he leant on the arm of the servant who paced him down the stairs certainly was.

"Lord Watanuki." Lord Iemura was slightly breathless as he descended the last of the stairs. The tall servant at his side took more of his weight as his hand left the banister. "It must be important if you came to see to me in person." His gaze moved to Doumeki and he gave a deep bow of the head. "Your Highness." His dark eyes held a resigned look. "Let's take this to the library."

Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro. Some of his anger had dispersed at the sight of Lord Iemura, replaced by a certain grimness. He caught Doumeki's gaze on him and his mouth tightened briefly before he started walking after their host. Lord Iemura, having received no objections, was now slowly walking further into the house.

Several minutes later they reached the library. Lord Iemura seated himself into a straight-backed chair with high arms. The servant silently helped him into its embrace and stood nearby, ready to intervene if his lord suddenly needed his assistance. Doumeki swept his eyes over the man, noting the protective attitude, as he took his own seat.

Kimihiro sank into a chair next to him. He glanced at the man briefly as well then turned his attention to the seated lord. His lips thinned as he saw the beads of sweat Lord Iemura's face, the way the other man gripped the arms of his chair.

Lord Iemura caught his stare. "I became ill a few years ago. I still haven't fully recovered." His eyes lowered to his legs briefly and then he was changing the topic, skirting around the issue of his health. His dark eyes fixed on Kimihiro. "What's happened?"

Kimihiro glanced at the servant standing beside the lord's chair then met Lord Iemura's gaze squarely. "When was the last time you visited the Northern Ward?"

Lord Iemura's eyes lowered. "Not for some time," he admitted softly. "My sister, Naomi, has taken over many of my duties." His eyes rose once more, meeting Kimihiro's with a grim stare. "Lord Watanuki." The lord's voice was deadly calm. "What has happened?"

Kimihiro didn't mince words, matching his bluntness. "The new wings of the hospital are unprotected and many of the patients have succumbed to gaichu." His voice was cold, laying out the facts with deadly precession. "And those in the older wings have been subjected to other threats. One of the physicians was killing patients." Kimihiro paused, eyes narrowing. "He was using a strangling knot."

Lord Iemura had been paling at Kimihiro's words but he twitched at the last piece of information. The servant's hand descended to rest questioningly on his shoulder. Lord Iemura raised a thin hand to cover it with his own. "It's alright, Njorn." His hand lowered to his lap. His eyes turned to Kimihiro once more. "How many?"

Doumeki had wondered the same thing. He watched Kimihiro, waiting for his answer.

Kimihiro's right eye flickered slightly but otherwise showed no emotion. "It must have been going on for years. Those still tied to it numbered over a hundred."

Lord Iemura's eyes shut. For a long moment he was still. "You dealt with it?"

The dark blue stare softened slightly. Kimihiro nodded. "I've unravelled the knot." His eyes flickered. "And dealt with what remained."

Lord Iemura straightened in his chair. "I was unaware." It was said with self-recrimination. His voice took on a more formal tone. "I apologize for the trouble you have gone to on my behalf."

"Don't apologize brother." The sharp voice made all four men turn towards the side of the room. A woman dressed in a simple pale blue dress which contrasted with her dark hair and eyes, stood next to the shelves. There was a clear resemblance to Lord Iemura.

"Naomi." The lord made to rise, only to sink back in his chair as the young woman quickly crossed the room and pushed him back into his chair. As soon as he was seated, she turned with a furious whirl to face Kimihiro.

"You have no right to reproach my brother, Lord Watanuki." Lady Iemura's dark eyes flashed with barely-restrained anger. "Especially when you have neglected your duties to the extent that a goryo has breeched the Wards."

"Naomi!" Lord Iemura's voice wasn't loud but the rebuking word was enough to render his sister silent. "We all find ourselves in grievous circumstances. Flinging blame isn't going to help the situation." He stared at her for a moment before turning to Kimihiro. "I trust you've seen Lord Durham?"

Kimihiro had been staring at the lady expressionlessly, but now he turned back to Lord Iemura. "His successor." He was watching Lord Iemura closely for his reaction. "Kenneth Durham is now the new Northern Keeper."

Lord Iemura's eyes went wide with shock. "Successor?"

"Impossible." His sister had folded her arms across her chest. "Lord Durham is on vacation, not dead."

Kimihiro's fingers flexed around the head of his cane. "Philip Durham made his cousin, Kenneth Durham, his successor more than a month ago." His face still had its watchful cast but it had softened sightly. His dark blue eyes flicked from Naomi to her brother. "I was under the impression you knew."

"No." Lord Iemura's voice was faint. "I was aware that Lord Dur-" he frowned "Philip had left the Ward in his care but not as his successor." His face was pinched. "Communications with the Northern Ward have been strained recently."

"I was refused entry into the shrine." His sister broke in abruptly. Shock had taken away the bite of her words. "Lady Durham insisted that that he was ill and unable to see visitors." Her lips compressed. "I had hoped to see him about your letter, Lord Watanuki, but I wasn't given the chance." Her dark eyes flashed. "And I was uncertain of his cousin. He's rumoured to be a scholar without any attunement."

So Kimihiro had been in communication with both of them. It didn't surprise Doumeki. But he was curious about what Kimihiro had written to them about.

The lady's eyes were worried as she continued. "I was planning to bring it to Lord Durham's attention when he returned."

Kimihiro frowned. "You haven't received any of Kenneth Durham's letters?"

Lord Iemura snapped to attention at the question. "No." He sounded disturbed. "I haven't received anything from the Northern Quarter."

Kimihiro's mouth tightened. He flicked a disturbed look to Doumeki before turning his attention to Lord Iemura. "There was a reason my letter was delivered by messenger." His eyes narrowed. "I doubt any messenger pigeons are getting through."

A wary look slid over Lord Iemura's face. "His work?"

Naomi's face had drained of colour. "The crows." Her suddenly frightened eyes darted to her brother. "They were in the Ward that day when I was turned away."

There was a slight creak as Kimihiro leaned back in his chair. He glanced from Naomi to her brother. "It could have been. But I suspect it was another problem in concern to the new Keeper's missives."

Doumeki agreed. Kenneth Durham was likely to have sent a messenger rather than a pigeon. But messenger pigeons…The Southern Ward had an empty pigeon house located inside the central enclosure. But it had been functional when his grandfather had been Keeper. If it was the preferred method of communication between the second lines and their Wards, then it might have been the way Haruka had been in contact with Kimihiro without gathering notice-

"Lord Iemura." Kimihiro's voice had a thoughtful edge to it that had Doumeki's attention snapping back to him. "Do you still indulge in hawking?"

"Not for some years." Lord Iemura had a glint in his eyes. "But Naomi has kept it up."

Lady Iemura had grasped what Kimihiro was suggesting. She had a slightly vicious look in her eyes. "I'll have to bring Akane in from the estates."

Kimihiro's mouth twitched and his grip on his cane had loosened. His eyes turned to Doumeki, a small considering look. "His Highness has suggested that a festival be carried out in the capital."

Doumeki suddenly found himself the focus of three pairs of eyes. Lord Iemura was regarding him with renewed interest while his sister had a look of surprise on her face. The manservant at Lord Iemura's side was studying him with a silent assessing stare.

"Lord Durham had pledged his support." Kimihiro continued. "If His Highness can convince east and west-" he trailed off.

Lord Iemura was wearing a thoughtful frown. "Spring would be better than summer. But I don't think the there would be enough time for preparations." He glanced at his sister.

Naomi was thoughtful. "It could be done." She glanced at Kimihiro. "Lady Browning would support you and that might help with Her Grace." Doumeki suddenly found himself being measured by her dark eyes. "Ultimately Your Highness will have to convince them. The second lines support the Wards, not dictate their actions."

"The west is another difficult prospect." Lord Iemura was grave. "It's hard to say what His Grace is thinking and Lord Kuroda-" He trailed off, looking a bit uneasy.

Kimihiro was frowning. But his lips firmed when he caught Doumeki's gaze on him. "It will take some time," he admitted. "Either way, Lord Durham will need your aid and advice in the next few months."

Lord Iemura sat up a little straighter in his chair. "I'll see him in person."

His sister sent him a dark gaze at that but remained silent.

"Lord Durham has acquired several pieces of the Gozen service and I'll be sending the rest to the Northern Ward during the week." Kimihiro was idly tracing the head of his cane. "I've suggested it be placed in the hospital to protect the unwarded wings."

Lord Iemura blinked, a startled look crossing his face. "Lord Watanuki-" he trailed off at a lost for words.

Kimihiro looked up. "The Southern Ward has no need of the service's protection-" he didn't look at Doumeki "-and it was intended to protect those in most need."

Lord Iemura looked saddened at that. "Thank you, Lord Watanuki." It was said softly.

Kimihiro nodded, looking slightly uncomfortable. He suddenly got to his feet, using his cane. "I have another engagement."

Doumeki wasn't aware of anything. He supposed that meant he was invited over for dinner.

Lord Iemura glanced briefly at him and nodded. "I won't keep you, then."

There were nods of the head all round and Kimihiro started out of the room, Doumeki following.

"Lord Watanuki." Lord Iemura had pulled himself forward in his seat, hands gripping tightly to the armrests.

Kimihiro stopped in his tracks, half-turning towards the seated lord. An inquiring glance over one shoulder.

Lord Iemura a shot a wary glance at Doumeki before returning his gaze to Kimihiro. "If you've still been having troubles -" He hesitated, but apparently made up his mind. "I am not the healer my father was but I would like to offer my services."

Kimihiro had gone deathly still at Doumeki's side. There was a tense moment when he was silent but he finally spoke. "Thank you." His voice would have been inflectionless if there wasn't a strange tense edge underlying his words. "But I have already sought out aid elsewhere." He dipped his head in a small bow of gratitude. "I thank you for the offer, though."

He paused. "There is someone else who needs your aid, though." He slowly turned around, the look in his eyes softening the lines of his face. "Lady Halsted still has not recovered." His eyes flickered. "Her condition is beyond my limited skills."

Lord Iemura's grip on the chair had relaxed slightly, a look of understanding crossing his face. "I'll visit Lady Halstead when I go to the Northern Ward."

Kimihiro nodded. "Thank you, Lord Iemura." And so saying he continued out of the room, Doumeki thoughtfully following him out.

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro tripped on the rug underfoot, only a quick stab of his cane preventing him from falling. He recovered, face heating in embarrassment. He was tired and it was starting to show. His anger had been enough to push away his weariness but now that it had subsided, he was feeling drained. It had been a long day. One where the bad news had piled up, one piece on another.

Not that it had been all bad. There had been enough glimmers of hope to make Kimihiro think the Northern Ward might regain its full strength once more. With a strong Keeper at its heart, the Ward should be able to fulfil its function as part of the protections of the city. That was what he hoped. And what had happened made him determined to secure the east and west as well.

A hand slipped under his elbow, providing support. Doumeki was there again, the frown on his face concerned. Kimihiro looked at him for a moment. Trying to work out whether it was merely an offer of aid or something more.

The Keeper simply stared back at him. It was no use. Doumeki was as readable as a brick sometimes.

Kimihiro slipped free from his grasp with a nod of thanks and fended off the footman's concern. The young man had darted forward at his stumble and was still watching him worriedly. In a household whose master was ill, the serving staff was clearly keyed towards aid at the first sign of weakness. Laudable but unnecessary in his case. He already had Doumeki watching him, ready to lend aid at a moment's notice.

He walked more slowly through the foyer, taking more care for his footing. Trying to present an image of reasonable health. A surreptitious sidelong glance at Doumeki, however, told him that it was a futile gesture. The Keeper was still keeping an eye on him, acting much like he had all day.

Kimihiro frowned. Doumeki had been abnormally quiet, simply watching and assessing everything, lending a hand when he faltered. Presenting the picture of a gentleman where he had not. It would have been galling if he wasn't so embarrassed about it. After thinking of so badly of Doumeki in the past it had been he who had lost his temper.

And he had even thought that Doumeki was using his weakness in the hospital for his own motives-

The footman, glancing at him in concern, opened the front door. The noise of the busy street outside – the clop of the horses' hooves on cobbles and the rattle of passing carriages – suddenly hit them. Kimihiro absently followed Doumeki outside, barely registering the door closing softly behind them.

Perhaps he should ask Doumeki back to the mansion. For a meal. He could do that at least. It was something friends did. It didn't have any other connotations.

Kimihiro scowled. This was stupid. All the doubt and hesitation over the way things appeared or how they could be interpreted. He wanted Doumeki to stay for dinner and that was that. It didn't mean anything. Just dinner between friends. He had already established that he enjoyed Doumeki's company and there was nothing wrong with that. Nothing at all.

And if it was something else from Doumeki's side-

He suddenly stopped, realising that he had followed Doumeki down the street rather than into the carriage. Doumeki kept walking and Kimihiro suddenly noticed the shadowy forms that were keeping pace on the other side of the street. Oblivious, the pedestrians on the footpath were walking through them, their corporal forms tearing holes in the insubstantial spectres that blocked their way. The spirits didn't notice, their eyes fixed on Kimihiro, watching him stare at them.

One of them he recognised. The hollow eyes were fixed on him, the dark eyes lit with recognition. One foot slid forward, preparation to crossing the road.

Kimihiro darted a glance ahead of him. Doumeki had gotten further down the street. He burst into movement again, nearly trotting to catch up with the wandering prince. The move started up the aches in his body once more but he wasn't concerned with pain at the moment. "What are you doing?" Doumeki apparently had some destination in mind.

Doumeki stopped and cast him an expressionless glance. "I'm buying sweet potatoes." He lifted a hand to point at the seller on the corner.

Kimihiro set a hand on the offending arm and lowered it forcibly to Doumeki's side. "Don't point!" But it was a distracted admonition. He was staring at the sweet potato seller Doumeki had spotted. He hadn't had sweet potatoes for years. Just the thought of them was making him hungry.

Doumeki was looking down at his arm. Kimihiro's hand was still resting on it, forgotten. Kimihiro hastily removed it, trying to ignore the hint of warmth that was seeping into his cheeks. What was _wrong_ with him?

Kimihiro's retreating hand was caught in Doumeki's own. "I'll buy you some." And then Doumeki was pulling him down the street, not giving him a chance to protest.

It was only when he arrived back at the carriage, juggling the wrapped sweet potatoes in his gloved hands and wearing Doumeki's coat, that Kimihiro realised that he had been holding hands with Doumeki in public.

~x~X~x~

Ahahaha! And in the Northern Quarter's hub of all places. Busted! XD Her Majesty's not going to like that :D Haruka, you're such an evil man XD

See? I told you it was a good one XD *happy sigh* Welcome back gore and violence! *_* Not that there was much, really. But I'll make up for that later :) Still there was a lot in there. The current political situation, a bit on Doumeki's youth, Haruka, the Northern Ward (wasn't that fun?)…well I'm not going to list it all here. You just read it after all XD Though you'll probably want to read through it again. I did stuff in quite a bit *sweat drop* Sorry about that.

~x~X~x~

But wait that's not all? That's right I wrote those two side pieces. The first is Falcon's Nest which is a little scene of what happened in the Iemura household after Doumeki and Watanuki left. By rights it probably should have gone in False Physician but sweet potatoes rule and I wanted to end it on that note XD (Damn, now I'm getting hungry. Do we have sweet potatoes? No? I'm going to have to go out and buy some XD)

And the other is Dark Ink. That's right Kazahaya and Rikuo are in Lord & Prince, too (God help me .). It focuses on why they were at the party - and yep, there are clues in there for plot otaku. So yes, you have to read it! Not really. You don't have to XD But you might **_want_** to *sly smile*.

Originally I was going to post them with False Physician but I thought that would be a bit too much. When they're ready the links will go up here. Probably in week, maybe sooner. And after that Kurogane and Fai are back in Flesh & Water. What fun XD


	65. Falcon's Nest

**Anonymous Replies**

**A.B.**: I certainly did. Sorry for the wait there. It took a while to write XD She's a sweetie XD And she'll keep appearing. I'm glad you still think so :D YAY! (I was editing for a month XD) It's good you could just read without worrying about it :D Of course I will. If only to get that reaction XD

**timme:** An extra big one to make up for it XD Nothing wrong with that. You've probably already read this bit as well, then XD Is that a good thing or a bad thing? XD There is, if you haven't read the background pieces. Or Covert Gaze or Sage Advice. They're in my AU listing (link in my profile). Otherwise, you'll have to wait XD Thanks!

**FLONNIE B**.: Not a problem, you don't have to apologise. I'm glad to hear it XD Thank you :D I've done a bit of study and research, I admit. LOL. I try when I can. Oh, flattery XD And high expectations too XD Let's hope I don't disappoint. I can see that XD I will. And I don't see how I could XD I certainly do XD

**SisterFreaks:** Thanks! I'm glad you like all the detail. LOL. That seems to be what most people are hanging out for. I certainly will. Here you are :D

**Custard Apple:** I'm happy to hear that you're enjoying it so much! :D LOL. That's certainly the idea XD I'll do my best to satisfy you XD

**Alice:** LOL. You have now XD I'm glad you enjoyed it :D You have good reason to be. Things are rather dangerous at the moment and Akio isn't helping the situation. When it rains, it pours. That's wonderful! I'm so happy to hear it! :D No, you're absolutely fine :D LOL. I don't mind at all. And here you go: some more XD You're welcome.

~x~X~x~

AN: Late I know, but here we go. What happened in the Iemura household after Kimihiro and Doumeki left.

FALCON'S NEST

There was silence for a few moments after the two men had left.

Njorn fisted his hands except for his index fingers. The left turned palm up and he hooked his right index finger over his left. He reversed the gesture.* He raised an eyebrow. _Friends?_

"Apparently." Shou Iemura muttered. "I didn't know that they were introduced. I hadn't thought Lord Watanuki had gone to the Southern Ward since Haruka Doumeki died."

Naomi was thoughtful. "They seemed rather comfortable together. I'd say they've known each other for some time." She glanced at the closed door. "Lord Watanuki might have been moving around more than I thought." A frown crossed her brow. "Though how anyone could miss him..."

Njorn shrugged. He touched his eyes with his index and middle finger, the others curled up in a fist. _Blind._

"Maybe." Naomi didn't seem convinced that it had simply been blindness on their part.

"Naomi." Shou cut into the speculation. "We're going to have to go to the Ward tomorrow."

Naomi frowned but didn't give voice to the negative that Shou knew was foremost in her mind. Ever since he had fallen ill, she had taken more and more of his duties upon herself. He had never feared for her competence; despite the fact that she had no power, Naomi had learnt along with him from their father. He simply worried that she took too much upon herself. It wouldn't surprise him if she been shielding him and hadn't told him about everything at the Ward.

"I know." Naomi didn't sound happy about it but she knew what was at stake as much as he did. She surveyed him with a pensive frown. "But Njorn's coming with us to help you." She saw him opening his mouth to protest but she overrode his words. "And you can use a cane. If Lord Watanuki has one, then it shouldn't be a problem for you."

But Lord Watanuki didn't need to use one.

Naomi saw his change in expression. Her voice softened. "I don't want you to have another fall."

Shou couldn't refuse his sister when she wore that expression. He looked up at Njorn. The tall man nodded. He obviously agreed with Naomi.

"Alright. But we need to do something about the goryo." Before more people died. Before it was too late. If it wasn't already. Shou frowned. "Kenneth Durham might be able to hold the Ward but the Quarter is another matter."

"_I'm_ going to take care of it. Philip might have kept me in the dark but his successor won't." There was a stubborn glint in her eyes. In all likelihood, she was going to bring it up in their meeting tomorrow. "And until then, _you_ are going to rest. You're not meant to be walking around and receiving guests."

Shou shifted guiltily under his sister's hard stare.

"And you've got to stop healing everyone who gets a scratch." She glared at him. "I heard about the kitchen maid. She would have healed in a few days. You're meant to be preserving your strength."

Shou's mouth opened only to shut again without uttering a word. There was little he could do in the situation with the condition he was in. Just descending the stairs had taken a lot out of him. He was somewhat dreading going back to his bedroom. Unless of course...His eyes moved to Njorn involuntarily.

A smile crossed Njorn's face. Both of his hands were brought to his chest, thumbs up and finger bent so that the first joint of his fingers were against his vest, and scrubbed at his chest. He then tilted his head slightly with his right palm on his right cheek before inscribing a question mark in the air with his right index finger. _Bath or bed?_

Shou's face was red. He darted a glance to his sister, who was studiously ignoring the entire conversation. "Njorn." It was a pained whisper.

Njorn's smile widened. He slapped his chest lightly twice with his right hand and shot the lord and inquiring glance. _Mine?_

"Njorn!" It wasn't a whisper anymore.

Naomi intervened. "Njorn, just get him to bed and keep him there." She gave him a slight smile. "I don't care how you do it."

"Naomi!" Shou gave his sister a scandalized look.

"It's not like I don't know what you get up to. I think the whole house knows at this stage." She didn't seem concerned in the slightest and ignored the splutter her brother was emitting. "You shouldn't have come down in the first place. I doubt Lord Watanuki or His Highness would have cared if you received them in bed."

"That's not the point-" But Njorn was already bending down to lift him from his chair. Struggling would only end up with him on the floor. Shou wound his arms around Njorn's neck to make it easier as the manservant lifted him, an arm under his knees and the other around his back. It was an almost automatic gesture these days.

Naomi's smile widened. "I'll send word when dinner's ready."

Shou was grateful that she hadn't said anything else. To think she had known all this time- He could feel his face heating up again. There had been a few close calls but he had though they had covered up well.

Apparently not.

But Njorn had taken his lack of protest as agreement. He was holding Shou more firmly than was strictly necessary, his hand resting on his thigh rather than his knee. Shou gave him a warning glance but Njorn simply raised his eyebrows in innocent enquiry.

"Ensure that you have a good rest." The seriousness of Naomi's words had Shou turning back to her, Njorn's impudence ignored. His sister was staring at him, her eyes dark with concern. "You'll be seeing Lady Halstead as well as Lord Durham." Her mouth was pulled tight in a grim line.

Njorn's grip tightened enough to have Shou looking up at him. The long lines of his face, usually animated with good humour, were pulled tight in worry.

Healing spiritual wounds was a perilous undertaking. And for him, weakened as he was from his illness, it was even more so.

It had been easier when he had been younger. Before the plague and the toll it had taken on him. Now to walk people's souls and patch the gaping holes threatened to tear him apart as well. He had his own wounds which made him vulnerable.

His gaze returned to Naomi. She knew how much it would cost him.

Shou stared at her; the tense set of her shoulders, the way her hands were clutched in the fabric of her skirts. It was worry, a deep-held fear that fuelled her often-sharp tongue. Naomi hated the risks he took when she, who the healing gift had bypassed, could do nothing.

He nodded. "Lady Halstead should have been seen to long ago. It was something that I should have attended to as soon as she arrived at the Ward." He continued, forestalling Naomi's protests. "It is my duty, Naomi." Had been the duty of the line for nearly a thousand years. Simply because his body was weak was not an excuse. "And I can hardly refuse when Lord Watanuki has asked me." His eyes moved to the empty chair the lord had sat in, voice lowering. "He's been trying to hold the Wards together beyond his own responsibility." Shou ignored the tightening grip on his thigh and side. "I can't let him continue shouldering my burdens."

Naomi was scowling. "That stupid pride of yours is going to get you killed." She was genuinely angry. "It's the reason you're so sick in the first place!" The words were a mixture of anger and grief. And guilt.

The words cut Shou to the quick. He knew that Naomi had felt responsible but he hadn't known to what extent. But the raw words finally told him. She had been holding on to it for all this time. An unnecessary sense of guilt. He had never blamed her. It had been his fault, not hers.

"I'm not going to let you do it again." The words were softer but left no space for protest. "I'll go with you. And when I tell you to stop, you're going to stop."

Shou nodded, unable to speak. He had no intention to add to the burden she carried.

~x~X~x~

Naomi watched Njorn carry Shou out of the room, her brother no longer protesting. He was silent, lying in Njorn's arms with his head resting on the young man's shoulder. All hint of his previous embarrassment had disappeared and she was regretting her outburst. She had never meant to say that. She never meant to say anything that caused him pain.

The door clicked shut and she buried her face in her hands. She could still see the look of realization on Shou's face, his wide eyes and the pain that soon followed. He was younger but he still felt responsible for her. And that had always been the problem.

Naomi had never had the skill to heal others. Not even in the physical skills that her father had patiently taught her. The only thing she seemed to have inherited was the strong constitution of the line. In a way she and Shou had been opposites: Naomi with the strength and Shou with the skill.

But that had changed with the plague. Naomi had been one of its first victims. Her strength had failed and in his attempt to heal her, Shou's skill had faltered. The unknown illness that it had kept in check was suddenly released. It had only gotten worse with every person that he had sought to heal afterwards. And Shou had been caught between the illness that ravaged his own body and the battle that he fought to free others from theirs. He had become whittled down by it, his strong confidence shaken and failures sending him down into a despairing cycle that only made his heath worse.

And Naomi had known that it had been all because of her. What had happened when Shou healed her had done something. She had been responsible for everything that followed. If he had died, it would have been as if she had killed him.

It had been Njorn who had saved them both. Arriving abruptly on their doorstep in a flood of blood that had washed the household clean of the darkness that had started to fill it.

Naomi recalled Shou's scandalized protests and her mouth quirked slightly. How could she not know what had been growing between them? It had been the best thing that had happened in recent years. Shou had finally been dragged out of the growing depression and worsening illness that had lingered even after the plague had subsided. Njorn was like the cure that Naomi had been unable to find. With Njorn at his side, Shou was almost as he had once been. Even his skill had returned.

She would have to watch him closely, however. Shou was determined to help Lady Halstead and he would likely push himself to achieve as full a recovery as he could. It was a matter of honour now that Lord Watanuki had asked. Not that Shou wouldn't have gotten involved in her plight as he did with every ill person he met.

Naomi sighed. It wasn't like she didn't know the failure of her own responsibilities. She had been keeping an eye on the Ward but had failed to see what was happening. Healing wasn't the only thing she had failed to inherit - she had no sight whatsoever. Even after being trained to spot the physical signs that indicated changes in the second world, she had failed to put a stop to the cause of what she had seen.

She had seen the new Wards built absent of the ward lines that would have protected them. The strange deterioration of some of the patients. Illness was a strange thing. Some people who were healthy on day could die the next. Or someone with injuries that no one could expect them to survive could recover enough to live almost normally again. Without sight it was hard to determine what was the result of a person's healing abilities and what was supernatural interference.

Yet what Naomi had been able to see had led her to seek out the Northern Keeper. One of the few men that she respected. The only one who knew what she had been going through after the death of her father and Shou's decline. Philip, even more than Shou, had been someone who she could talk to without reservations. He was one of the few people Naomi trusted.

They had sat on the landing as they often did, the wind lifting their hair and flapping Naomi's skirts. Philip had been better that he she had seen – thinner, more grey in his hair but he had lost the strained tension he had borne previously. He had looked almost peaceful. Philip had listened to what she had said and left her with the promise that he would deal with it. Shou didn't have to be involved.

She had been grateful. Shou couldn't rest when he knew others were suffering and he was doing nothing. Naomi had kept silent, not wanting to put any more pressure on him, to risk his health. Believing that Philip could handle it.

But it had been the last time she had seen him. The next time she entered the Northern Ward's grounds, she had been barred from entering. None of Naomi's angry protests had gained her access and she had been left to stride down the path to the gate, the mocking calls of crows echoing in her ears. If she had any doubts that there was something wrong at the Ward that had erased the last doubts. Philip wouldn't have done such a thing. If his harpy of a wife had managed it, it was only because Philip was unable to prevent her.

Something had gone wrong.

Naomi had been left torn between telling Shou and remaining silent. It was possible what had happened was the result of Katrina's spite; she had always detested Naomi and protested against the meetings her husband had with the younger woman. Or it could have been something more – either Philip's health or the Ward itself might have taken a turn for the worse. Naomi had been left to teeter in uncertainly, keeping her doubts to herself. She hated it. And as the days lengthened, she had become more desperate as it became harder to hide her worry.

Why had Philip fallen silent? And had he been able to keep his promise?

Lord Watanuki had finally provided the answers. Philip's illness had worsened. He was so ill that he had made the decision to leave the Ward. But he had kept his promise. He had left his cousin in his place, to fix what he could not. A cousin who was known for his scholarly aptitude if anything, a quiet man who people tended to overlook. If Philip had set him in his position, then it was probably the only thing he could do.

The thought made her heart clench in her chest. He hadn't told her anything. Someone else might have felt betrayed but she knew what he had done. Philip had been protecting her just as she had been protecting Shou. Her dear friend. She didn't even know if he had sent her word.

A shiver ran through her as she remembered the crows. Sitting quietly on the lintels of the hospital windows, watching everything silently with their pale eyes. A sign of what had taken root in the place.

Despite the state of the hospital, Naomi had been hopeful that they could prevent the tide of misfortune from spreading. She had been certain that with the Northern Ward in Philip's hands somehow it would be alright in the end. Faith and hope. Both dashed to pieces.

Philip was gone now and she was left to deal with his cousin in his place. A man ungifted like herself. She was going to have to have an extended conversation with him tomorrow. With Philip she had always know where she had stood. Shou's limits were known to both of them and they had tried to do what they could to limit his duties.

But now Naomi would have to learn about the new Keeper who they would support. He seemed to have impressed Lord Watanuki. Perhaps he had found some way to overcome his disabilities. Hopefully better than she had. Either way, she would be watching him to see whether he was suitable. She wouldn't let any more harm come to Shou and that included the dangers that their new Warden would lead them into.

But that was tomorrow. Right now she had to see about what measures she could take to secure their position. She had to arrange for Akane to be brought into the city. If the goryo had set crows to watch them then at least she could secure this house. No crows were going to venture near the place with Akane in residence.

Naomi strode across the library to retrieve the books she had set down when she had been interrupted. Gold writing winked from a thick spine as she tucked the largest under her arm. It was one of the oldest additions to library, a volume that was kept as a last resort. Her steps were firm as she walked across the room and let herself out into the corridor beyond. Securing their household was only the first of many things she could do.

She wouldn't be relying on the faith she had in others any more. She would become the strength of the line. The strength Shou needed.

~x~X~x~

Anton had accompanied them up the stairs to the master bedroom. The footman shot his lord a worried look as he opened the door for Njorn to carry Shou inside but he said nothing, closing the door quietly behind them.

Njorn stopped as soon as the door closed behind them. He bent his head down, bringing their foreheads together, and tightened his arms around Shou in a desperate embrace.

"Njorn." The arm tight around his ribs made the name a soft whisper. "Njorn, it's alright." Shou managed to free a hand and lifted it to Njorn's head, fingers stroking the pale strands of his hair, trying to make the younger man look up at him.

Njorn resisted for a few moments but finally lifted his head, their eyes meeting with barely a hand's span between them. There was fear in his eyes. A fear that made Shou reach up with his other hand so that he was cradling Njorn's face. "I promised you that I would stay with you." He meant it now just as he had meant it then. He wouldn't let himself weaken to the state where he was in danger of dying again. He wouldn't leave Njorn alone.

Or Naomi.

One of Shou's hands slid down Njorn's face to his throat. It stopped to rest over the hidden scar under his collar. A nasty jagged knot of scar tissue that had resisted even his efforts to heal it.

Njorn drew in a shaky breath, eyes closing. His head lowered until their foreheads were touching again, his breath flowing across Shou's lips.

"It won't happen again." Shou whispered it fiercely. "I promise you." It hurt to see Njorn like this. It reminded him of the first time he had seen him. Wild pale eyes and matted hair, a bloody hand clamped to his throat. And fear rising off him in palpable waves.

Njorn nodded, their heads rubbing together. A glitter revealed the silver track of a tear starting down from his eye. But his breathing was better. He seemed to be calming down.

Shou brushed away the warm tear. "Let me prove it to you." He smiled. "We have a few hours before dinner."

Njorn's eyes widened slightly. He stared down at Shou for a moment. Then he turned his head and lightly kissed Shou's fingers. Eyes still on Shou, he slowly started licking the traces of his tears from the slender fingers.

Shou didn't protest. If everybody knew about it, he didn't see any reason to bother with restraint. Not if it would reassure Njorn in some way.

Somehow he'd survive Naomi's teasing at dinner.

~x~X~x~

* I'm describing sign language to the best of my abilities. If there are any mistakes, my apologies!

So now you know a bit more about what's going on here. And now a slight jump back into the past, back to a certain party…And you thought Doumeki and Kimihiro got into trouble XDD

~x~X~x~


	66. Dark Ink I

AN: Kazahaya and Rikuo, as promised. Though a bit late .

DARK INK

I

**The light filtered through the green leaves overhead, scattering dappled light. A girl in a pale green kimono, long hair falling down her back, tilted her head, eyes closed, up towards the warmth of the interrupted light.**

**Kei.**

**She turned towards him, her large eyes staring blankly, a smile on her lips. "You're going to leave me, Kazahaya. The wind can never stay still too long." **

**She turned her face back up to the sun, a smile curving her mouth. "But I'll never let you go."**

Kazahaya opened his eyes to see Rikuo staring down at him. From barely three inches away. Simply staring as if watching to see what he would do next.

"What are doing in my room?!" Kazahaya shrank back into his pillow, trying to put as much space between them as possible.

Rikuo had that perverted smile on his face. "You know, you're pretty cute when you're sleeping."

Kazahaya went bright red and threw the nearest thing to hand, which just happened to be a pillow. "You pervert! How long have you been watching me sleep?"

The pillow bounced off Rikuo's chest and fell to the floor. His smile widened. "Long enough."

Kazahaya pulled his bedclothes up his neck. That dickhead!

"Get up." Rikuo was acting as if he wasn't the depraved bastard Kazahaya knew him to be. "It's midmorning and Kakei has a job for us."

~x~X~x~

Rikuo had left as suddenly as he had come and Kazahaya had no choice but to throw on some clothes and hope that they would be suitable. Kakei didn't like waiting.

He bent and picked up the pillow on the floor before tossing it onto the bed. That asshole. Why was he always staring at him in that way? Kazahaya shivered, thinking of how Rikuo had been leaning over him and watching him sleep. The freaking perv.

Even if Rikuo had been the one who had stumbled across him, most likely saving his life, Kazahaya couldn't feel grateful. The jerk had no manners and didn't know how to live with people. Forced to share a home with the creep, it was impossible for Kazahaya to ignore the fact that Rikuo was a complete bastard. Especially when he keep harassing him and making sexually charged comments at every given moment.

Kazahaya stalked to the wardrobe and angrily pulled on a shirt. Why couldn't Rikuo leave him alone?

A few minutes later, Kazahaya hurried down the stairs that led to the second floor. The building was located in the Northern Quarter of the capital. It was north of the Hub, an old townhouse which had been converted into a stately establishment that was part residential, part commercial. What had once belonged to a prosperous merchant had become the base of operations for Kakei and his strange partner. The ground floor had been converted to a drugstore while the second and third floors remained living quarters. Most customers came to the drugstore but there was a steady stream of other clients who came for the special services that were offered by the establishment. It was the latter in which Rikuo and Kazahaya were most often called on to use their unique skills.

Kazahaya grimaced. If his father ever located him and found out what he was doing- He quickly pushed the through from his mind.

Kazahaya hurried down the corridor, heading to Kakei's study. There was no sign of Rikuo - the jerk must have already gone inside. Kazahaya paused outside the door. It was decorated with an array of radiating lines that formed a sealing ward; a star, its arms interspersed with strange organic forms. It reminded him of the witch-warding signs the servants used to scratch on the wooden beams of the old house. Scrawled on every surface to divert evil. He hesitated for a moment then knocked.

"Come in." Kakei's voice came from inside the room.

Kazahaya pressed down on the handle and let himself in the room.

Kakei sat on a couch, a cup of tea in one hand. He looked up as Kazahaya entered and smiled in a way that made Kazahaya nervous. "Take a seat."

Kazahaya looked around. There were only two couches - one on which Kakei sat and the other which Rikuo was sitting on. The asshole caught his gaze and smiled, a small movement of lips that was practically coated in mockery. Kazahaya glared at him and sat as far away as he could get on the couch.

Kakei was staring at him with a smile, eyes slightly amused behind his glasses. "A client has asked us to retrieve a certain object."

"What is it?" Kazahaya was hoping that it wouldn't be something similar to what they had been set after the last time. His face flushed. Rikuo still hadn't let him forget what had happened.

"That information wasn't provided." Kakei's smile hadn't changed. "But its location has been narrowed down to one room - you should be able to find it without too much trouble."

"Where is it?" Rikuo had reverted to the sour, slightly angry look he usually wore on his face.

"Lord Irving's mansion. The object should be in his study." Kakei smile widened. "A ball is being held there tonight so you should have ample opportunity to retrieve the item. I have already secured invitations."

Kazahaya shifted uncomfortably on the couch. He hated this kind of job. He wasn't used to the overdone celebrations the nobles held in the capital. Even though Kazahaya came from noble stock, he had never been exposed to any celebrations before coming to the capital. Kei and he had never been allowed outside the country house in which they had been confined, let alone any social gatherings. Their father had wanted them far from the sight of any eyes. Their _taint_ hidden from the rest of the family and the world. If Kei hadn't fallen ill, Kazahaya would still be there, trapped by the thick stone walls-

Rikuo was eyeing him curiously and Kazahaya glared to hide his unease. He needed to do this job to get the money he needed. Even if it meant he had to do it with Rikuo.

"How are we meant to know what it is?" Rikuo turned his gaze back to Kakei.

Kakei took a sip from his cup. "Kudo should be able to identify it with his special skill." His eyes flicked to Kazahaya, gazing disturbingly through the strands of his pale hair. "It will be clear when you see it." He looked at Kazahaya over the rim of his cup. "Do you accept?"

"Yes." He didn't have much of a choice.

Rikuo was staring at him, a small frown on his face. "Yeah."

The cup was set back on the saucer that sat on the low table. "You'd better get ready, then." It was a dismissal.

Rikuo stood and Kazahaya hastily followed suit. He followed Rikuo out of the room, closing the door behind them.

"'It will be clear when you see it'. What did he mean?" Kazahaya thought out loud. His sight was erratic at the best of times – he wasn't going to go around touching everything just to find one item. Not with what he saw.

Rikuo cast him a glance over his shoulder. "You're not too bright, are you?"

Kazahaya glared at him. "What do you meant by that?"

"It's good to see you two getting along together." A dark haired man was coming down the stairs leading to the third floor. He was wearing a long dark coat and a pair of spectacles with darkened lenses that hid his eyes. Saiga.

"Who could get along with him?!" Kazahaya glared at Rikuo who stared at him without changing expression. He looked like he didn't even care what Kazahaya was saying.

"Don't be such an ass." Saiga had left the stairs and now draped himself over Kazahaya's shoulders, one hand sliding familiarly around his waist. "If you two want special time together, it will have to wait." His warm breath fanned across the side of Kazahaya's face. "You have to get ready for tonight."

Kazahaya turned his head to look up at Saiga's face. "What do you mean? It's just a ball, right?"

Saiga grinned. "Your clothes are upstairs." His hand slid across Kazahaya's chest, tracing a measuring line. "I fitted them especially for you."

"Are they women's clothes?" Rikuo was already heading up the stairs.

That- "Why would they be?!"

Rikuo paused, looking back down the stairs. "A dress would suit you." His mouth was pulled into that perverted smirk again.

"You ass!" Kazahaya slid out of Saiga's grasp and started up the stairs. "I'm never going to wear a dress!"

"Have fun at the party, boys." Saiga's laughter followed them up the staircase.

~x~X~x~

Saiga closed the door behind him, before crossing the room to stand behind the couch. "You didn't tell them what they were looking for."

Kakei smiled at him. "That information wasn't supplied."

"You could have told them that it would be a personal item." He leaned forward over the other man, one arm sliding across his chest. "It would help narrow it down."

Saiga's hand slid across the side of Kakei's neck, lifting his hair, and Kakei let his eyes close. "It's more fun for them to find out on their own."

There was a low laugh in his ear. "You're such a sadist." Saiga's hand had slid up to take a hold on Kakei's jaw.

Kakei merely smiled and turned his head so that his lips met Saiga's. One slender hand rose to the dark head of hair and Saiga's comments were silenced.

~x~X~x~

Kazahaya stood on the sidelines and tried to blend in with the flower arrangements that were lined against the wall. Rikuo had been mobbed by a noisy, brightly-coloured crowd of ladies as soon as he stepped in the door. Why was Rikuo so popular? He couldn't see what any of the women could see in that moody guy. Even now he could see the gathering of skirts around Rikuo where he stood across the dance hall. Asshole.

He fidgeted with the stiff cuff of his elaborately embroidered jacket. Leaves, spiralling tendrils and other organic forms worked up the sleeves in a metallic green that shone against the dark fabric. It fitted perfectly, just like all the clothes Saiga prepared did.

But he was uncomfortable wearing it. It was more formal than the clothes he was used to. The jacket, shirt and waistcoat were court clothes worn by nobles in the capital. The clothes his father had worn on his infrequent visits.

The thought sent a ripple of unease through him and he glanced out anxiously at the crowd filling the ballroom. The other guests wore clothes that had cost a small fortune, even without the precious jewels that adorned throats, ears and fingers. They were lords and ladies, rich merchants and royal officials. Some of the most powerful people in the empire gathered under one roof.

And everywhere Kazahaya looked, he was reminded of the wealth and power of their host. The large crystal chandeliers hanging down from the high arched ceiling, the gilded mouldings that traced over the walls and the gleaming marble underfoot. Even the large bouquets to either side of him were a bright profusion of colours - flowers that had been raised carefully in hothouses for decoration of the great hall. The huge vases that held them were obviously worth a fortune.

Kazahaya was nervous in such surroundings. He wasn't used to so many people crammed into a small space. Just threading through the crowd without touching anyone had been a miracle. At the last party they had attended he had outright fainted when he accidentally brushed up against one of the lords. The image of blood splattering across the face of a young boy had flashed into his mind followed by a confused jumble of dark things that were abruptly shredded by a blazing light. By the time he had come to his senses, the man was gone and Rikuo was staring down at him. Just staring at him.

The dick.

He glanced across the hall again. Rikuo had unbuttoned his jacket and it gaped open to reveal the silver on green embroidery of his waist coat. Even as Kazahaya watched he leaned forward towards a young lady and touched the delicate earring hanging from one of her ears. She blushed at his words and turned her face away. But she was smiling.

Rikuo caught Kazahaya's gaze on him and smirked.

Kazahaya seethed. What was Rikuo doing? They were meant to retrieve the item and then get out of here as fast as possible. Not try and chat up girls. Rikuo was such a-

"It's quite a spectacle, isn't it?"

Kazahaya practically jumped at the question. He whirled to see a plump, middle-aged woman had come to stand beside him. She was a little out of breath and Kazahaya assumed that she had been dancing.

Pale green eyes regarded him kindly, the woman having noticed his jumpiness. "So many people can take a while to get used to." She gave a little laugh. "I can remember my first ball. I hid behind the flower arrangements all night, too."

Kazahaya flushed, embarrassed to be so transparent. Had it been that obvious that he didn't belong here?

The lady gave him an understanding smile. "I don't think anyone else has noticed. It was only because I was looking at the flowers that I saw you." She lifted a gloved hand to trace the edge of a pale white petal. "It will be the last of the narcissus for a while." She sighed. "I am going to miss them. It is a long wait until spring."

There was an edge of wistfulness to her voice. Looking at her cheerful face in repose it seemed to be shadowed by sadness. "There are always cyclamen." They had grown in the garden when it had only been Kei and him, the two of them. "They flower throughout winter."

The lady blinked. "I don't have any in my garden." Her expression was curious. "I thought we were too far north for them to do well."

Within a matter of minutes they were engaged in a conversation about the various flowering plants that grew during winter. Kazahaya lost his nervousness, relaxing in the undemanding conversation. Standing along the wall as they were, he didn't have to worry about any stray touches. And it was nice to have an inconsequential conversation with someone normal.

But after several minutes, even though the lady's manner was light-hearted, it became clear that something was troubling her. Her smiles were a little worn and there was an edge of sadness in her pale green eyes. When there was a pause in the conversation, Kazahaya impulsively asked what was troubling her.

Her eyes opened wide in surprise for a moment before creasing softly with a smile. "I am sorry. Have I been distracted?"

"No." He genuinely wanted to know what was wrong. "I just sense that you're hurting in some way."

Her smile wavered for a second. "I do have something weighing on my mind." She hesitated, pale eyes searching his for a moment before she continued. "My husband is in the Northern Ward and his health has deteriorated recently. But the same thing has happened to other patients as well." Her thin eyebrows lowered in a concerned frown. "It's almost as if a pall has enveloped the building."

Kazahaya instinctively reached out and touched her hand in an attempt to comfort her. An image of a tall, thin man lying in a bed, black lines like dried blood streaming across the pillow flashed through his mind. He withdrew his hand. "I think you should talk to a practitioner."

The lady had been staring at his hand in some surprise and now her eyes widened once more. Her lips opened as she started to say something, only to close as her eyes flicked to the side.

Kazahaya got a glimpse of Rikuo's face up close and then the dickhead had an arm around his shoulder holding him close to his side. "There you are." His gaze shifted to the lady. "I hope you don't mind if I borrow him for a few minutes."

Pale green eyes glanced from one of them to them other before softening into a slightly puzzled smile. "Of course not."

Kazahaya didn't have time to say anything else as Rikuo's grip tightened and he was pulled away from the woman. He managed a glance back to catch a curious look and a small wave of one gloved hand.

He turned back to Rikuo, trying to pull free from the asshole's grip. "What was all that about?"

Rikuo grinned, malicious amusement lighting his eyes as he leaned forward, breath licking across Kazahaya's ear. "We don't have time for you to try and pick up older women."

That- that dick! How dare he suggest something like that after he'd been parading around for the last half an hour with girls hanging onto his every word. Kazahaya scowled. One day he was going to show everyone how twisted the asshole really was.

But Rikuo's face had taken on its usually solemn expression. "I found out where it is. We're going to have to hurry."

~x~X~x~

My, my. Lady Dexter does stumble on the most interesting people, doesn't she? XD


	67. Dark Ink II

DARK INK

II

Rikuo dragged him through the throng of lords and ladies who crowded the ballroom. The asshole had a hard grip on one arm which looked normal enough but was tight enough to hurt. Kazahaya would have been trying to pull free if he wasn't so occupied with avoiding touching the people he was pulled past. Most were drawing back with absent nods and vaguely surprised stares but there was still the odd slow-moving old lord and the giggling girls in bright dresses who were slow to clear their path. Kazahaya had a hard time avoiding them but he managed.

Barely.

It wasn't until they had left the ballroom, dodging the stray drunken guests out in the halls, and ducked into the comparative quiet of a small parlour that Kazahaya pulled free. "Don't just grab me, you jerk!" He massaged his wrist, glaring at Rikou who was being a bastard, not apologising but regarding him with an amused stare.

"I didn't want you fainting on me again." He smirked, unaffected by Kazahaya's glare.

He hadn't done anything to help. In fact Rikuo had only made things worse! If he'd simply told Kazahaya they were going-

There was laughter outside the door and Kazahaya froze, head turning over his shoulder. The door handle was starting to turn. Someone was about to enter the room-

What if they were caught in here?! Kazahaya desperately tried to think of an excuse to explain why they had left the ballroom. He glanced wildly around the room, hoping for inspiration.

Rikuo's hand fell on Kazahaya's shoulder. Before he could react, Rikuo was pulling him close. _What the hell?!_

The door opened and the giggle was suddenly cut off by a shocked inhalation. For a moment there was frozen silence.

"Sorry for interrupting-" It was a young man's voice. Embarrassed and wavering at the end. The door was suddenly slammed shut and then there was the sound of fast-retreating footsteps.

Kazahaya tore free, pushing Rikuo away. "How dare you!" He could barely choke it out, he was so furious.

Rikuo smirked. "Enjoyed it more than you thought you would?"

"What?!" Kazahaya screeched.

"Don't tell me it was your first time?" The smile turned into a grin. "Maybe next time you'll be better."

That- That asshole! Kazahaya was bright red. With anger. Next time-

Rikuo leaned forward until Kazahaya was recoiling and in danger of falling backward. "We can-" Kazahaya flinched as Rikuo's breath fanned across his face. "-continue this later." Rikuo's grin had fallen back into a neutral line.

Why was he so close then? If Kazahaya leaned back any further, he'd fall over. And kissing him like that! What was wrong with the asshole! Kazahaya was getting angrier by the second. You didn't do that without someone's permission. Not that he would have given it, anyway-

"The party's in full swing so now's our chance."

-Rikuo was such a dick-

Rikuo's dark eyes locked on his, face suddenly close. "You listening?"

As if Kazahaya couldn't hear him at such close quarters. Kazahaya glared at him. "We'll find it and then we get out." He wanted to get out of here as quickly as possible. Especially since Rikuo was acting like such an asshole. "We don't want to get caught."

Rikuo gave him an unsettling smile. "Shy?"

Kazahaya backed away before he could do anything else.

~x~X~x~

Except for the faint sounds of music and laughter from the ballroom, the halls were quiet. There were a number of servants walking the corridors carrying trays of food or glasses but mostly they were ignored. One look at them and the servants' faces acquired neutral blankness and they hurried on, pretending not to see them.

Kazahaya let his head hang down, trying to hide the embarrassed anger that coloured his face. Why did he have to be the one pretending to be a drunk? He wasn't such a teetotaller. And it didn't help that Rikuo's arm was around his waist, disturbingly comfortable with the whole situation.

It was several embarrassing minutes later that they reached Lord Irving's study. It was located on the south side of the east wing, far from the ballroom that was in the west wing. Kazahaya nervously watched the corridor as Rikuo extended a hand towards the door. If they got caught here now, there wasn't an explanation to get them out of it.

Rikuo's kiss rose in his mind. Kazahaya scowled. If Rikuo tried that again he'd punch him in the gut. Hard.

There was metallic crack and an acrid burning smell filled the air. Kazahaya glanced over his shoulder at the door. Rikuo had already finished - the lock had practically disintegrated.

Rikuo took a hold of the handle and the door swung in easily, revealing the broken metal where the lock had been sheered off. Rikuo stepped into the room and, with one last anxious glance down the corridor, Kazahaya followed.

Kazahaya walked cautiously into the room. The study was unlit except for the faint light coming from the smouldering coals in the fireplace on one wall. But it was enough to show the outline of the large desk set next to the wide curtained windows and the shelves on one wall. There were also two armchairs, their wooden arms gleaming in the limited light, that were set either side of a small table on the other side of the room.

The door shut behind him and Kazahaya jumped, whirling to find Rikuo standing behind him. "Kakei said it would be kept somewhere so that Lord Irving was in contact with it regularly, so it's probably on the desk." He was either unaware or didn't care about the fright he had given the other man.

Kazahaya glared at him, still pissed at being frightened. "The desk?" It could have been anything from the poker to the chair.

Rikuo glanced at Kazahaya coolly as he brushed past him on his way to the desk. "You have a better idea?"

Fuming, Kazahaya watched as Rikuo poked the fire into life. There was a lamp sitting on the mantelpiece and Rikuo lit it with a paper wick from the fire. After replacing the glass cover and adjusting the wick, he carried it over to sit it on the desk, lighting the surrounding area.

Kazahaya looked over the objects arrayed on the desk. It was mostly bare except for a few curios: a small statue of a standing woman placed opposite a small statue of a snarling dog; a leather writing insert; a small clock ticking quietly to one side; a cigar box; an ashtray carved from fine stone and two pens standing at attention either side of sealed inkwell. Nothing out of the ordinary.

_It will be clear when you see it._

He eyed the objects warily. The appeared harmless but they had all been handled by Lord Irving. Kazahaya didn't fancy a troll through the man's past.

Rikuo started pulling out drawers, riffling through their contents. "The client didn't specify what it was, only that it would be small, probably something in constant close proximity." He suddenly looked up, an irritated expression on his face. "Are you going to just stand there looking pretty or are you going to start looking?" On corner of his mouth lifted. "Or are you waiting for some encouragement?"

Stung, Kazahaya glared at him. He started sifting through the items on the desk, trying to ignore the perverted smile Rikuo was wearing. That ass! This was the last time he was going to go out on an errand with the pervert. His hand fell on the pen and ink stand. Next time he was going to demand that he went by himself. He idly flicked open the lid of the inkwell, revealing the dark liquid inside.

The scent of ink invaded his nostrils and the room suddenly winked out.

~x~X~x~

**It was pitch black. Kazahaya spun around but there was only darkness. ****No light, nothing. ****"Rikuo?" His voice didn't even echo - it was just swallowed by the vast emptiness that surrounded him.**

**Kazahaya could feel sweat beading on his forehead. He didn't like dark places - not when they were without light. The darkness pressing in on him until he was the only living thing. Him and the dark, shut off from the world-**

**Kazahaya tried to keep calm. But he could feel his breath quicken and he couldn't help the way his eyes were darting around him, trying to see when there was no light. **

**He didn't like being alone, either. Kei had always been with him before. Always waiting when their father had separated them. Whispering through the walls. **

**And after he had left Kei, Kazahaya had found the shop and Rikuo had been with him almost constantly. Only in the period between - when he had made his way to the capital - had he been alone. And that had been one of the most frightening experiences of his life.**

**He hoped that Kei was alright without him. That she was- **

_**She's dead.**_** It was a dry whisper, spoken directly into his ear.**

**Kazahaya spun. There was no one there, only unyielding darkness.**

_**Why are you here?**_** It was a different voice. At his side.**

**Kazahaya's head swivelled. Still nothing met his eyes-**

_**They're simply using you.**_** It was the first voice again. This time directly in front of him. **_**They're-**_** the voice moved as if someone was walking around him -**_**feeding you hope of a cure to keep you with them.**_

**Kazahaya's head turned to left to track it.**

_**Keeping you on a leash.**_** The last words were whispered in his right ear. Strangely intimate-**

**He had to get out of here. This wasn't right-**

**A cold hand closed over his nape, making him freeze. What had he been doing again? It was something important-**

_**They hide it but they really want to destroy you.**_** The voice in his ear was soft, so reasonable. **_**To smother you.**_

**To lock him away from sight. Kept in the old house far from everyone's sight. Shut away from everything till his existence was only within the high stone walls.**

Into the box Kazahaya.

**Pain started up in his hand. Jolting up his arm and growing. But Kazahaya barely registered it. He was distracted by the warmth that was rising slowly around his legs. A warm tide that lapped around his ankles and slowly rose to his knees. Warm, gentle wetness.**

**Another cold hand touched his face. A cold thumb brushed over his lips.** _**It would make sense to make the first move. To destroy them before they destroy you.**_** The finger stopped tracing his lips. Still like a dead stick of ice.**

**To strike first- Kazahaya's thoughts were jumbled.**

**The cold finger pressed against his lips. A slow and inexorable pressure, seeking to part his lips and slide into his mouth.**

**A sharp pain in his finger sent a bolt of agony up his arm in a fiery line. Kazahaya's eyes snapped open. **

**It wasn't dark. There was enough light to see the rising tide of black liquid that was now up to his thighs. The **_**thing**_** that stared into his eyes, one hand across the back of his neck, the other in front of his face as it tried to slip a maggot-like finger into his mouth.**

**It was smiling.**

**Kazahaya recoiled, shoving it away. It fell into the ink without a sound and Kazahaya turned, trying to run through the thick rising liquid.**

**He was pulled short by a painful jerk of his arm. It sliced through his palm, a tearing pain like a blade had thrust through it and was tearing a larger hole. He looked back-**

**A glint of metal shone through the blood coating his hand. A short curving piece attached to a thick black line of chain that disappeared into the rising ink. It was a hook, its barbed point spearing right through his palm.**

**A sloshing noise jerked Kazahaya out of his shock.**

**Something pale was rising from the dark waters. The thing that had been clinging to him before. A creature that resembled nothing so much as a child's corpse, pasty limbs stretched impossibly thin, fingers like writhing maggots.**

**Kazahaya gagged at that sight, recalling how it had been trying to force one of the disgusting digits into his mouth.**

**It was still smiling. It had eyes like black slits, a pair of dead smiles. The lipless mouth opened to show teeth like a cat's.**

**Kazahaya took a shaky step back only to be brought up short by the pain in his hand. He was caught on a line like a fish.**

**There was another sloshing noise and his eyes darted aside to see another creature rising from the water. There had been two voices, he suddenly remembered. There were two of them.**

**And both of them were now smiling at him with dead eyes as they approached.**

**The rising ink was now at his hips, cold like the creature's fingers. Chained as he was, he was either going to drown or be at the mercy of the two things that approached.**

**Kazahaya took a hold of the bloody hook imbedded in his hand and ripped it free. **

~x~X~x~

His knees gave out and Kazahaya slumped to the ground, cradling his hand to his chest.

"Shit, you're bleeding all over the place." Rikuo was crouching in front of him. Kazahaya let out a noise as his injured hand was gripped and something soft was wrapped around it. Rikuo wasn't being gentle and Kazahaya glared at him through the pain. The asshole ignored him, getting up. "Just sit there and be quiet."

As if he was going to go anywhere. His hand felt like it had been ripped apart. Kazahaya looked down at it. Blood was already soaking through the handkerchief that wrapped around his hand. But that wasn't the only thing. One of his fingers stuck out at a strange angle, a stick of pain partly masked by the agony of his hand. When had that happened-

Rikuo suddenly appeared in front of him again and suddenly hauled him to his feet.

Kazahaya hissed with pain. But he wanted to know how he had ended up like this. "What happened?"

Rikuo's eyes flicked to from his face to his hand. "You wouldn't let go so I had to use force."

"What?!" The bastard had broken his finger! The-

Rikuo clapped a hand over his mouth. "Shut up! Do you want us to get caught?"

For a second or so they simply glared at each other. Kazahaya broke the stare first. Rikuo was a dickhead but he was right. Kazahaya didn't want to be discovered here. Not by the person who had owned the dark inkwell.

He was right but he was still a bastard.

Rikuo lifted his hand.

He didn't even show any remorse, the asshole-

Rikuo slung one of Kazahaya's arms over his shoulder and started walking to door.

Kazahaya cradled his hand to his chest but his mind wasn't on the pain anymore. He was going to get the bastard back for this.

~x~X~x~

**A finger touched his lips.**

Kazahaya started at the cold touch, gasping awake.

Rikuo gave him a strange look and got up from the chair at the side of his bed. "He's awake." He didn't sound pleased at the prospect.

Kazahaya glared at him. The bastard had broken his finger. Even after being set, it still throbbed with pain.

Kakei approached the bed and took the seat. Kazahaya saw Saiga leaning against the wall. The spectacled man gave him a cheerful wave of one hand.

"Your finger should heal well." Kakei's eyes were calm as always, a faint smile on his lips. "As should your hand." He glanced at Rikuo. "The exercise was a success - you'll both be paid in full."

"What about the inkwell?" Rikuo was frowning, his arms folded across his chest.

What about his finger was more like it! The asshole should be compensating him for damages. He glared at Rikuo, who ignored the heated stare Kazahaya was directing at him.

Kakei ignored it as well. "It will be delivered to the client." He glanced at Kazahaya briefly before continuing. "It shouldn't be a threat to anyone else."

Rikuo still didn't look happy but he didn't protest. He glanced at Kazahaya, frown deepening.

Kakei was watching them both. "I'll leave you to get some rest." He got up, one of those distant amused smiles crossing his lips. "Don't do anything to hurt your hand."

Saiga pushed off against the wall to follow but was pre-empted by Rikuo.

Rikuo cast Kazahaya a glance before he left the room. "Don't get hurt next time." He shut the door firmly behind him.

As if he had wanted to! And Rikuo was the one who broke his finger, the asshole! It was typical of Rikuo to put all the blame on him. He was such a dick-

Saiga patted his shoulder. "Give him a break. He saved you after all." He walked to the door, pausing to glance back with a grin. "I think he's making a habit of it. You should be _nice_ to make it up to him."

Nice? What the hell would be considered nice-

He froze, suddenly remembering how Rikuo had kissed him. That-

"Get some rest." The tall man sipped out the door

But Kazahaya wasn't listening. Nice? Not in a million years. He was already planning on how to get back at the dick for what he had done.

And trying not to think of dark places.

~x~X~x~

The grin had disappeared from Saiga's face. "The boy doesn't look so good."

Kakei was grave. "I didn't expect it to be so strong." A faint, almost proud look crossed his face. "But Kudo was stronger. Another person would have fallen to its lure."

"Like Lord Irving?" Saiga warily stared at the box the inkwell had been sealed in.

Kakei glanced up at him but didn't answer.

"What are you going to do with it?" Saiga slid an arm around Kakei's shoulders.

"Send it to Lord Durham. He should be able to deal with it." His voice had softened, uncharacteristically tired. "And the harm it's caused."

"Will it be enough?" Saiga's arms wrapped around Kakei's waist and chest.

Kakei stared at the box on the table. "I can't see. It could go either way."

They were both silent for a long while, Saiga holding onto Kakei and the other man leaning back into his embrace, eyes closed.

~x~X~x~

This will probably be all you see of these two except for small cameos in lord & prince later. I think *sweatdrop* It is possible, due to their pasts, that they'll force their way back for more *amused*

And since this was late, you'll all be pleased to know that you won't have to wait as long as everybody else (who sniffed this out at my LJ XD) to read the next instalment ;D

~x~X~x~


	68. Ceaseless Ripples

**ANONYMOUS REVIEWS:**

**Random Weirdo**: I'm glad you enjoyed it! :D A few :) Thanks!

**Anabel Sinclair:** I try to be :D LOL. Thank you! It makes me really happy to hear that :D I love how people's actions can tell you more than their words. It's great to know that it's working in my writing. LOL. I don't know how she's done it but she's ranking up with the main characters in popularity. And here it is. Enjoy :D

**rainystar:** It's been a long journey. *nod* He's a lot calmer and had a stricter upbringing XD Thanks! I try to keep everything as consistent as I can. here you are. I hope you enjoy it :D

**KurobaX** Ch19: You're welcome XD LOL. That's wonderful - I love hearing about reactions like that XD One of my favourite lines as well :D But i wouldn't go around quoting it out loud XD Thank you! *enjoys tea and biscuits*

Ch54: LOL. That must be frustrating. But I suppose it's much like speaking a different language XD

~x~X~x~

AN: And here we are – the next update. And for those of you who bother to read my ANs, the link for the Lord and Prince Character List (http:// flakedice. livejournal. com/ 57312. html). Use it wisely XD

ENTWINING FATES:

CEASELESS RIPPLES

"A carriage has just pulled up at the Iemura house!" Lady Foster drew back the curtain and leaned close to the glass as she peered out. "I can't quite see who it is-" There was a faint chime from her earrings as she craned her neck, a rustle of skirts as she leaned against the sill. "Drat! The carriage is unmarked." Frustrated disappointment was clear in her voice.

"Be careful your nose doesn't freeze to the pane, Melinda." Lord Foster turned the page of the broadsheet he was reading.

There was a sharp inhalation from the window. "Bartholomew!"

Lord Foster ignored the horrified retort. A small bolded heading had caught his eye. So Lord Watari was up to his old tricks again. If the Laittes weren't careful, he'd end up owning half their land.

"Oh!" The sound left Lady Foster's mouth in a startled rush, her earlier pique forgotten.

Lord Foster frowned. There was a notice for the commencement of public works. His frown deepened as he read more of the small print. There had been an order for the upgrade of the main streets in each quarter. Her Majesty was up to something again.

"Bartholomew!" The sharp tone of voice finally had him looking up. His wife was practically pressed against the window now. "I think that was Lord Woodrow!"

He lowered his paper. "Lord Woodrow?" And in an unmarked carriage. He would hardly be in the Northern Quarter on warden business. Perhaps he was out to visit Lady Iemura? But that didn't fit the trail of young women the lord had left behind him. Lady Iemura was practically a spinster and never had any visitors. "Are you certain?"

His wife's tone bordered on frustration. "I could only see his jacket but it bore the oak crest-"

Melinda was an expert at identifying people by their clothes. She had to be right. It didn't make much sense, though.

"-but the man with him..." Melinda was peering awkwardly through the glass.

"Man?" It wasn't looking like a social visit anymore.

"He practically flew up the steps. He moved so quickly. I couldn't see what he was wearing." Melinda turned fully away from the window in disappointment, seating herself with a sigh. "The silver cane he held, though-" she peered back at the window again, unable to help herself, "-I'd say he was at least of equal rank."

A silver cane. Lord Foster frowned, newspaper forgotten. Why was that so familiar?

~x~X~x~

_Father._

_Though I cannot know whether you will read this, just as I cannot be sure that you have read the previous letters I have sent, I hope that my words reach you. I know that I have not been the son that you have wished for. That my presence in your house was a thorn in your side and my actions, the associations I made, were a liability for our noble name. For this and the grief I have caused you I am sorry. When I think upon what you must have suffered I am pierced with my own agonies of regret. If I could change the past somehow so that you would not feel the shame you do now, I would._

_But I cannot change what I am. I must act as my conscience, as my duty dictates. I know that you would disagree with me but I beg that you hear me out. And that the understanding I wish to impart may soften your regard of me and lead towards some form of reconciliation-_

The pen stuttered and spat as the hand wielding it suddenly jerked. Dark blotches had sprayed across the pristine page, marring the neat lines of handwriting. The ruined letter was ignored however, as its author abruptly stood and moved to stare out the window.

There were carriages passing down the street. People strolling down the sidewalk. And there were the spirits which were gathering below, ignoring the damage that was being done to their incorporeal forms as living being passed through them. Their attention was focused on the other side of the street.

The young man's eyes widened as he saw the two men standing on the sidewalk. It was unmistakably Lord Watanuki and Prince Doumeki. Even as he watched, the prince started down the street. Lord Watanuki, after a quick glance across the street at the gathering spirits, hurried after him.

Osamu quickly turned away from the window and hurried back to the writing desk. The ruined letter was shoved aside, a new piece of paper set down on the desk. He had a more important letter to write.

~x~X~x~

"Essie!" The call grew louder. "_Essie_!"

Esmelda's shoulders hunched at sound of the jarring calls. She glanced down at the book she held with exasperation. With the two gnats approaching, she wouldn't be getting back to it anytime soon.

Running footsteps filled the corridor outside. The door burst open just as she was slipping a bookmark into place. And suddenly the quiet, comfortable surrounds of the library was invaded by pale frills, bustling skirts and high-pitched voices, words tumbling from painted lips a mile a minute.

"Essie!" Ayako rushed across the room, pale pink ruffled skirts held up in her hands. "You'll never guess what we just saw!"

Esmelda glanced from Ayako to Nellie. She was right behind Ayako, hands holding her peach skirts in an identical fashion, revealing underskirts and boots. The feathers on her small hat bobbed up and down in an excited quiver. Her face was flushed just like Ayako's. They looked like sisters. More than Esmelda and Ayako ever would.

Esmelda sighed silently. They were both quivering with the news they had. If she didn't ask, they were both going to explode in sheer excitement. "What did you see?"

"His Highness!" The words burst out of Ayako's mouth. "His Highness was walking down the street! Can you believe it?!" Her hands had transferred from her skirt to Esmelda's sleeve, clutching onto her in excitement

Esmelda set her book down carefully on the side table where it would be safe. "Which one?"

Both of them gave her shocked, scandalized looks. "Prince Doumeki, of course!" Ayako wore a look of disbelief on her face. "Prince Kudo is out of the country. Even you know that!"

She did. Esmelda had felt somewhat sorry for him when she had heard the news. It must be horrible to be forced into an arranged marriage simply for a political alliance.

"We were just leaving Nellie's house-" Ayako continued, Esmelda's blunder forgotten in the need to tell all the details.

"We wanted to get some ribbons." Nellie interjected, eyes sparkling.

"-and there he was! Striding down the street!" Ayako squealed. "He's so handsome! He's even taller in person! And those pale eyes-" she sighed longingly.

Esmelda was frowning. That didn't sound right. "Are you sure?"

"Of course, I'm sure!" Ayako exclaimed. "There's no way to mistake His Highness for someone else!"

Nellie nodded vigorously.

"Then what was he doing walking down the street?" If they said it was Prince Doumeki, then they were probably right. But Esmelda couldn't see why His Highness would visit the edge of the Northern Quarter's Hub without good reason. It wasn't exactly the pinnacle of high culture.

Ayako and Nellie fell silent, eyes wide. It was clear that neither of them had thought about it at all. They exchanged glances.

"Maybe he came to see someone." Esmelda mused. It seemed like the only explanation.

"But he was already with someone!" Ayako asserted.

Nellie brightened. "The pretty man with the cane!"

A strange expression flittered across Ayako's face. "They seemed to be close."

"Close?" Esmelda found herself interested, despite herself.

Nellie fidgeted, eyes lowered. "They were holding hands."

Holdi-

"But I'm sure it was only because His Highness was helping him down the street." Ayako said quickly.

Nellie nodded, the feathers in her hat bobbing vigorously with the action. "He was awfully pale. It looked like His Highness was leading him somewhere."

"Maybe," Esmelda mused aloud, "His Highness is interested in men."

Ayako and Nellie gawked at her, eyes wide and mouths hanging open.

"Well, he hasn't married yet, has he?" Esmelda reasoned.

"Essie!" Ayako was outraged. "How can you say such a thing?"

Esmelda blinked, struck by her younger sister's vehemence. Hadn't she listened during their history lessons? It was a perfectly reasonable idea. Had Ayako slept through the lesson when father was telling them about King Hotaka and his favourite, Lord Matsuoka? Or the Battle of Kurokawa? "What's wrong-"

"His Highness simply hasn't found the one he loves!" Ayako was leaning forward, face frightfully intense, and Esmelda shrank back in her chair. "He simply needs to find the right person!"

Nellie nodded vigorously. "My mother said he couldn't decide between Lady Hishida and Lady Fukao." Her eyes brightened. "But I think he's holding out for a love match. Doesn't it make sense that he left the palace in search of love?"

Not really. But it was clear that neither of them were going to listen to reason. They both had debuts in spring and Esmelda had a sinking feeling that they hoped to be the one to introduce His Highness to love.

Some of their excitement had returned at the prospect. "We'll have to tell mother!" Ayako finally let go of Esmelda's sleeve and took up Nellie's hand, already intent on leaving the room. She paused in the doorway to turn back. "You should stop reading all those books, Essie! They give you weird ideas - you'll never get married!"

The door shut abruptly, narrowly missing their skirts. Esmelda listened to their fast-retreating footsteps for a moment then returned to her book.

She stared at the leather-bound cover, worn smooth by so much use. Her mood suddenly plummeted.

She didn't need to worry about marriage. After several refusals, Lord Satoya's persistence had paid off. Father had accepted an offer that morning.

~x~X~x~

Oh dear . On all fronts. I've put some people into very difficult situations. Especially Esmelda. I wouldn't entrust a dog to Lord Satoya :0 But it just shows some of what's going on behind the scenes. There's a fair bit of foreshadowing there, too XD Oh and I hope you caught that little clue *grin*. Puts certain things into a new perspective doesn't it? XDD


	69. Water & Flesh I

ENTWINING FATES:

WATER & FLESH

I

It was pouring down, a deluge that hammered into the city with ferocious force. The Ame-Warashi was in a bad temper. It was a saying but Doumeki reflected that it might be actual fact. If ghosts and spirits were real, who was to say that the Ame-Warashi wasn't as well? Or the hitotsume kozõ, oni or tengu? (1) It certainly felt like _something_ was venting its wrath on the city. The weather was so bad that travel by carriage was hazardous, a cautious progress on slippery cobbles and slow negation of flooded streets. Doumeki had a fleeting thought of pity for the wardens out on patrol, who had to navigate the city on foot.

He was probably the only one present to do so. Most of the people filling the hall had their minds on things far removed from the plight of those who were subjected to the storm's full force. The sounds of the storm were muffled by thick stone walls and heavy drapes, drowned out by the loud music, dancing feet and buzzing conversation. The last was currently the loudest, rumour and speculation afire among the nobles attending the ball.

The stares and whispers had started as soon as he had entered the room. It was a glance or two at first then a widening ripple that enveloped the hall as it became apparent who had just arrived. The music had come to a halt as the revellers stopped talking, ceased dancing. The sound of the rain sheeting down outside and the close rumble of thunder that crackled through the sky above were suddenly audible and loud within the hall. There was a pause for a moment and then the lords and ladies were acknowledging his arrival with a series of curtseys and bows that blended the gathered nobility into an uneven human wave.

Doumeki had acknowledged them with a nod and signalled the band to continue playing. The music had started up and the dancers slowly surged into motion, a metallic flash of embroidery and flow of satin and silk skirts as the lords and ladies twirled around one another. And as they did, the conversation started up again. Louder than before as they discussed the unexpected arrival.

Doumeki was used to it - it occurred wherever he went. But he was aware that it was different this time. As he stood to one side of the hall, Doumeki was conscious of the mood growing in the hall. Usually the reactions were more positive, not the wary eyeing and avoidance that confronted him now. Eyes flitted away on contact and the usual line of fawning admires held back. There was a certain reserve about approaching him.

But it wasn't held by everyone.

"Your Highness." Lady Fukao had slipped up beside him and sank into a graceful curtsey. She was wearing a pale blue dress, an unexpectedly flowing, wide-skirted confection that recalled the fashion of two decades ago. Her dark hair trailed down over her shoulders in shining ringlets, a dark mirror for the pale blue topaz spirals that hung from her ears. The outfit made her look younger, like an innocent young girl. An impression that clashed with the look in her dark eyes and the slight smile on her lips.

Doumeki was wary. "Lady Fukao." He gave a small nod.

Her dark eyes flicked over his face. "It's unusual to see Your Highness at one of these gatherings. At least not in the ballroom." The lady's smile widened. "Especially recently."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed slightly, aware that her bright gaze was trained on his face. "I've been busy."

The topaz earrings winked as Lady Fukao tilted her head slightly. "Your Highness is very dedicated to his duty." There was an amused tone to her voice that made Doumeki stare at her. Lady Fukao's mouth quirked at his expression. "It's a pity Lady Hishida isn't here." There was a hint of satisfaction in her smile that belied the sympathy in her voice. "She's been eager to see you and the moment you grace us with your presence, she's nowhere to be seen."

Doumeki's gaze involuntarily shifted towards the crowd on the other side of hall. It was true - he couldn't see the lady anywhere.

"Perhaps she had trouble with her carriage." Lady Fukao's words brought his attention back to her. Black eyes stared up at him, sparkling merrily. She didn't look innocent at all. "But there's always the New Years celebration to look forward to."

The New Years celebrations. The grand gala his mother hosted every year to mark the end of the year and the start of another. He had attended every year and it was usually the same for all those who wanted to corner him for a private conversation.

But Lady Fukao's words made him pause for a second. Her assumption of his attendance made Doumeki start to think how little he wished to go. For the first time he wasn't certain whether he _would_ be going. For once he had somewhere else he'd rather be.

"Everyone's curious about what you'll be wearing this year." Lady Fukao cast him a sidelong look. "Of course that's not the only thing people are interested in." She turned her head to stare out at the dancers, the synchronized twists and turns across the floor, and the crowd that encircled them, lords and ladies clustered in tight groups as they talked. Painted eyes were trained in their direction even as painted lips were moving. Lady Fukao's bright lips creased in a wider smile. She seemed to revel in the fact that they were both the centre of attention. "There seems to be some confusion." Her gaze slid back to him, a dark glance from the corner of her eye. "There are numerous rumours flying around." Her eyes fixed on his face, half-lidded and watchful. "Lady Foster said that she saw Lord Woodrow visiting Lord Iemura at his townhouse last week. But-" she smiled "-Lady Inoue insisted that it was Your Highness." She paused for a moment, eyes still on his face.

Doumeki looked down at her and said nothing.

Her smile took on a slightly edged cast. "But most interesting of all, Lord Wada suggested that your companion was Lord Watanuki."

So they'd been seen. He'd heard the gossip, though it had been rather garbled. It was the first time he'd heard Kimihiro's name mentioned. Alastaire's coat had been enough to cast doubts in the gossips' minds. Until now.

Lady Fukao took his silence as confirmation. Her smile sharpened. "Such a dedication to duty is admirable, Your Highness-" her eyes were like black glass "-but associating with such people might create the wrong impression."

"And what would that be?" Doumeki kept his face expressionless, his voice revealing only mild curiosity.

Lady Fukao's perfectly arched brows lifted in surprise. Her smile suddenly became charming. "That you've developed a taste for other company." She laughed, as if the idea was ludicrous.

Doumeki waited until her laughter had died. "I've found Lord Watanuki to be a congenial companion." Lady Fukao's eyes widened, a rim of white showing around her black irises. He fixed the lady with a warning stare. "I would count him among my closest friends."

Lady Fukao's smile had faded as Doumeki spoke and faltered altogether as his last words. She was staring at him as if he had said something monstrous.

He leaned forward slightly, voice taking on a threatening edge. "And I don't take kindly to the malicious rumours that have been spread to darken his name."

Lady Fukao went white. And Doumeki suddenly knew that, if she wasn't the source of the rumours, the lady knew who had started them.

Lady Fukao stood frozen, a statue in skirts, as he continued. "You can pass that information on to those who seem so interested in my business." He gave her a small curt nod. "If you'll excuse me."

Lady Fukao started and made a hasty curtsey, her previous look of amusement replaced with shaken fear.

Doumeki left her behind him, starting towards the man he had spotted near the buffet. It was a gamble, but Doumeki trusted that his message would get to the right people. To act against Kimihiro was to act against him.

~x~X~x~

"Rising Serpent!" The ferret's voice was smug as it slid the last tile across the table. It was lying on a flat cushion that had been placed on the table to give it a view of all the tiles spread out across the worn surface. It now grinned across the table at its opponent, little paws reaching out for the empty glass sitting nearby.

Kurogane took in the positions of the small painted tiles and let out a growl of frustration. The ferret had won again. Even if it had a brain no larger than a walnut, it had more cunning than any human and used it to deadly effect. It had been winning steadily all night and had drunk as much as he had. Kurogane suspected the glass it won with each round was a major factor in its determination.

Kurogane poured more liquor into the ferret's glass. Its small black eyes glinted in anticipation, little paws glued to the glass. Likely it would chug it all down in one go as soon as he finished pouring.

The ferret had been slightly less annoying since it had been injured. Slightly. With only three good legs, it had lost the advantage of its speed and agility and seemed all-too aware of the fact. Most of the teasing had stopped, throttling back to quick comments and cheeky looks. Kurogane found he could bear with that; his need to strangle the furry sausage had decreased substantially.

Of course the sausage hadn't ceased to be a major annoyance. It couldn't move very well on its own and Kurogane found that he had somehow ended up as its personal conveyance. If he tried to leave it somewhere, Fai would only pick it up and shove it into his arms where it would snuggle up and look entirely too comfortable. And if Fai wasn't around it would hobble after him with piteous cries and imploring stares. Both which vanished into smugness once he had given in just to shut it up.

It was just easier to keep it happy.

That reasoning had led to this game. When he was left alone with the ferret, without Fai to distract it and give him some reprieve, it was easiest to keep it occupied. And if he had a few drinks to blunt the annoyance, that was a necessity.

But a few drinks had stretched into several as the number of rounds increased. Fai had received a message from his father early in the afternoon and still hadn't gotten back yet.

Kurogane frowned. Fai was always quieter whenever he got back from the sporadic meetings. They didn't happen often but when they did, it was usually unexpected and lengthy. And whatever went on left Fai depressed and unlike himself. Only the sausage could get a smile out of him. Or Kurogane - if he did something ridiculously sappy or sentimental. He usually just took Fai to bed early. A few hours or so and Fai would regain his carefree outlook and irritating ways.

It was the prospect of that now, though not the need for it, that had Kurogane in a more mellow mood. So mellow that he had initiated a game with the sausage. It was raining, Fai was gone and there was nothing else to do but drink and play games.

Aside from its tendency for victory, the ferret was almost pleasant. It had cut down its teasing to a few sly innuendoes that Kurogane didn't think were worth the effort of reaching over and strangling it. All in all it hadn't been too bad an afternoon. Or at least it hadn't been until there was a loud knock at the door.

The sausage froze in mid-sip, round eyes shifting to Kurogane.

It wasn't Fai. Fai didn't knock.

Kurogane reached for ginryu from where the sword sat propped up against the table and stood up. He cast a warning glance at the ferret before walking silently to the front door.

The door opened to reveal a familiar sight. A partially shuttered lantern cast light over the black winter coat of a warden, the insignia of the Southern Ward, the two crossed arrows on a background of silver mist, winking from the man's left shoulder. Minoru, one of the younger wardens stood on his doorstep, water trailing from the brim of the hat he wore. He was still a green tab and assigned to a pair for patrols. For him to show up alone was unusual.

The young man's eyes fell on the sword gripped in Kurogane's hand and widened slightly. "Sir." He drew himself up and nodded his head, small rivers of water falling to ground with the movement. "Another body's been found."

"Where?" Kurogane's former tension faded to be replaced with another. It had been several weeks of more dead ends. Kurogane had reluctantly come to the conclusion that the bastard would leave the city as the chief warden had suggested or they would find another body. He had been inclined to think another death was more likely. And he had been right.

But now that there was another body - it only served to piss him off. He'd had plenty of time to think about the messages left with the second body. That the bastard had been watching them and even been cocky enough to have a go at the furry sausage. Kurogane grit his teeth. And now it looked like the bastard had managed to kill someone else before they could catch him.

"In the merchant district." Minoru looked nervous, eyes darting from Kurogane's face to his sword.

Close to the wharves but not in the same area where the first two bodies had been found. Kurogane frowned. It might not be the same killer. There were murders almost every week in the Southern Quarter: bungled robberies, illegal duelling, crimes of passion and the occasional poisoning. The only way to be sure was to see for himself.

Kurogane strapped the sword belt around his hips and retrieved a coat from one of the pegs near the door. It wasn't a warden's coat but a plain one with deep pockets. "Wait here a minute." He left Minoru at the door as he pulled on his coat and returned to the room where he had left the ferret.

The glass was empty and the ferret still lay on its pillow. But it was staring at the doorway with a worried expression as Kurogane walked back into the room. All previous signs of contentment were wiped from its narrow furry face.

Kurogane stared at it for a moment. He couldn't leave the ferret. Fai would be pissed if he got home and found it alone. Kurogane didn't trust it with the rest of the bottle, either.

"Come on." He scooped it up, legs dangling from his awkward grasp, and stuffed in one of the coat's pockets, careful not to jar the broken leg. He needn't have worried, though. As soon as he let go, the ferret began shuffling around, making itself comfortable.

The weight of it pulled the coat down one on side and Kurogane set a hand on the heavy bulge to stop it from swaying at his side. He made his way back to the door, ignoring the look Minoru was giving to the ferret. It was peering out the coat pocket, the flap a convenient roof for its head.

It was best to ignore it.

Kurogane grabbed a wide brimmed hat and thrust it on his head before stepping out into the rain. He locked the door behind him and started to walk down the street, Minoru leading the way with his lantern. "Who found it?"

Minoru glanced back, face pale in the dark down pour. "Hiroko."

Kurogane's mouth tightened. Hiroko wasn't one to make mistakes. It looked like his slow evening had just gone out the window.

~x~X~x~

Hiroko met him at the mouth of an alley branching off from a narrow street. Her curves covered with a hooded coat, she looked like one of her fellow wardens. It was only when someone got close that they realized the shorter man was actually a woman. Though she always had her hair pulled back in a strict plait, the softer lines of her face always gave away her gender.

But it would have been a mistake to underestimate her because she was a woman. Hiroko had spent most of her training year in the Western Ward and was well able to use the truncheon she carried. The first partner she'd had tried to test the theory and ended up with a broken arm for his troubles.

"Kurogane." She shook his hand in a firm grip and then nodded to the ferret that was peering out of his coat pocket. "Mokona."

The ferret gave a little wave of one paw.

There was equal respect in both addresses, something that always annoyed Kurogane. But he wasn't concerned with the ferret's irritating popularity at the moment. "A body?" Kurogane got right to the point.

Hiroko wasn't put off by the abrupt manner. She nodded, the movement dislodging droplets from the rim of her hood. "One of yours, I think." Her dark eyes narrowed. "It's a bit messier, though." Her eyes shifted to Minoru, who was standing behind Kurogane just outside the alley. "Make sure no one comes through here."

The young man's gaze darted into the alley and he nodded. "Yes, ma'am."

Hiroko cracked a smile at the polite address. "Good." She turned back to Kurogane. "You can see for yourself." She turned and led the way down the narrow street, a small spray of water falling from the end of her coat.

Kurogane followed, not quite convinced. This was a bit far from the docks to be the work of the same man. Unless he was moving further a field.

"Youta spotted blood on the wall during our patrol and we followed it back here. The body could have been here for hours without anyone discovering it. Hardly anyone is out in this weather and they'd be staying to the main streets rather than the back alleys."

Kurogane could see why. The narrow street backed onto several derelict buildings, their windows shuttered or sealed shut with boards. A wide drain ran to one side of the cobbles and a rapid flow of water was rushing through its length, fuelled by the downpour trailing from the uneven eaves above. In the dark it would be all too easily to step into the drain and have a fall.

Hiroko was walking with an unconscious confidence, booted feet disturbing puddles that ran into the open drain. Only someone who was familiar with the area would know to stay to the left of the street and step over the precarious grates that crossed the path.

As it was a lantern provided some light to illuminate the area. A warden was standing further up the alley, holding an unshuttered lantern in one hand. As they approached, Kurogane saw that it was Youta, the tall, thickly-built warden who had been paired with Hiroko. He nodded to Kurogane and turned to lead them further down the alley. There was a fork ahead: a path that lead straight ahead to emerge out onto the lit streets again and side alley that was unlit, a void of shadows and treacherous footing. Youta led the way into the shadowy side alley, turning away from the prospect of lit streets.

It ended in a dead end about ten metres long. As they drew closer Youta's lantern lit the area, transforming the crumpled wet bundle that was lying at the end and half-wedged in the drain into blood-soaked clothes and pale limbs. Most of the blood had been washed away by the rain and into the drain but enough remained to show the violence of the killing. It wasn't the quick efficient work Kurogane had encountered before.

Kurogane's eyes narrowed and he crouched down to take a closer look. There was movement from his pocket as the ferret burrowed down deeper, head disappearing from the pocket's opening. Kurogane set an absent hand on the bulging pocket to keep it still but otherwise ignored it.

The man's head and one shoulder were stuffed into the open section of the drain, the rest lying on the uneven cobbles. One arm was jutting out at an awkward angle, bloodstained fingers lying in a lax curl. Numerous tears in the bloodstained fabric over the man's chest showed where a thin weapon had been repeatedly stabbed into the man.

"There wasn't much in the alley aside from the body." Hiroko continued. "Some discarded timbers, an old shoe and piles of refuse. If there was anything else it must have already washed away."

Kurogane's frown deepened. There was something familiar about the slumped over form. Something-

"Hiroko." He glanced up at the other warden, getting up from his crouch and taking a grip on the corpse.

Comprehension flashed across Hiroko's face. She immediately stepped forward and took her own hold. In a coordinated move, they pulled the corpse free.

A noise like a snarling gurgle emerged from the drain. The corpse fell back with a wet meaty slap that made the ferret jump in his pocket. But Kurogane had no attention to spare for the familiar's antics. He was staring down at the face of the man who had been killed.

The right eye was missing. A collapsed mess of fluids and flesh filled the deflated socket. Kurogane stared, an absent hand on the ferret in his pocket. There was no doubt. It was the same killer.

"Where's the chief warden?" As annoying as the man was, he didn't usually take long to appear when it was a serious situation.

Hiroko exchanged a glance with Youta. "He's unavailable." Her face was curiously blank when she turned back to Kurogane. "He's in the Northern Quarter."

On the social circuit that meant. Kurogane scowled. Shit. If he'd simply left word of how to contact him, Kurogane wouldn't be forced to contact His Highness.

~x~X~x~

1) hitotsume kozo - a goblin with a single eye on its forehead, often appearing the form of a young boy.  
oni - a ferocious horned and read-faced figure that is usually equated with ogres and demons but with an ambivalent nature; a benevolent face as well as a demonic one.  
tengu - an ambivalent creature possessing a long beak, wings and a man's body, usually guardians for sacred mountains.

~x~X~x~


	70. Water & Flesh II

ENTWINING FATES:

FLESH & WATER

II

"It's a smooth brandy you have here, Your Highness." Lord Iwase looked suitably impressed.

Doumeki leaned back slightly in his chair on the other side of the table. "It was a gift from my cousin. Shipped in from the East." Alastaire insisted that he needed something suitable to offer modern-inclined noble guests. Doumeki didn't care for it himself. His glass was barely touched. He was somewhat irritated to find himself in his current circumstances.

After his visit with Kimihiro to the Northern Ward, Doumeki had made the move to seek out some of his fellow nobles. With Kimihiro taking on the task of arranging a meeting with Lady Heath, Doumeki had been attending a select few of the invitations that Riku weeded out of the usual flood. Short appearances usually timed so he could avoid the ladies and slip into the dens and private studies to join the lords smoking and drinking. It was here that the real business was discussed away from the bright frivolity that abounded in the ballrooms.

His appearances had been met with a mixture of surprised greed and caution. Doumeki had been able to gather a considerable amount of information between offers of obsequious advice and self-interested propositions. Enough to find out that Lord Durham's financial interests had recovered enough to no longer warrant his mother's interference. Reassuring under the circumstances. Even if what else he had heard was not.

Most recent had been his foray to Lord Turner's gathering earlier that evening, though he'd had limited success. After several hours, Doumeki had left. The confirmation he had given Lady Fukao had whipped through the crowd in record time. After the initial shock and disbelief, curiosity (or perhaps the determination to gain another snippet of gossip) had gotten the better of several lords and ladies. Doumeki soon found himself approached by almost everyone attending. As it was he had no chance to slip away and seek out the information he was after.

The urge to go and see Kimihiro, a vague impulse at first, soon solidified into a certain course of action. Doumeki hadn't seen him for several days and after enduring the noble throng, he needed something to combat the fawning and constant political prying. Some pastries under Kimihiro's angry glares would do nicely. A quick change and then he would head over to the Watanuki mansion.

At least that was what he had planned. When he got home, however, Doumeki found that he had an unexpected guest.

Lord Iwase's eyes lifted from the amber liquid he swirled in his glass. "Lord Woodrow." He smiled. "Your cousin is making quite a stir these days. My daughter always has a story about what he's been up to at the latest gala or ball." His pale hazel eyes met Doumeki's. "It caught everyone by surprise when announced he was looking for a wife."

Doumeki didn't miss the implication. "The chief warden does as he likes." It had been Alastaire's idea after all, even if Lord Iwase suspected Doumeki had been behind it.

The lord smiled slightly and took a sip of his brandy. "I heard you were interested in a new business venture."

Now they were getting to the reason why the lord had come. Doumeki was noncommittal. "I'm investigating certain avenues." He wanted the audience to be over as soon as possible so he could leave. The weather had only gotten worse and more he delayed, the worse the roads would be.

Lord Iwase's smile widened slightly. "I also heard that Lord Iemura received an unusual visitor the other day." He glanced up over his glass. "Two men who arrived in an unmarked carriage." Unlike the disjointed and exaggerated rumours that were circulating, Lord Iwase's comment was precise and accurate.

Doumeki remained silent, waiting to see what the lord's intentions were. It could be blackmail. Not that it would be very effective - Doumeki was certain that his mother already knew. Or it could be something else-

"As Southern Keeper, you're the highest ranked official of the Quarter." Lord Iwase's voice was musing.

Doumeki took a sip from his glass. This wasn't going where he had expected.

"If a landholder dies with no delegated heir and opts to invoke muyõshi law (1), ownership reverts to the Keeper." Lord Iwase said it casually, in the same tone he had used to talk about the brandy.

Doumeki studied his face. All he got was a small smile.

"Lord Kimihiro has named no heir," Lord Iwase observed. "If he were to sign over his estates to the Southern Ward and succumbed to one of his reoccurring illnesses..." He trailed off suggestively.

Doumeki set his glass down carefully. Trying to hide the sudden impulse he had to smash it in the lord's face. He could see where Lord Iwase was going with this now and he didn't like it. Apparently Lord Iwase saw his move to the Southern Ward as a bid for independent power.

"I am unaware of Lord Watanuki's state of affairs." Just the suggestion that he was associating with Kimihiro for personal gain infuriated him. He found himself on the verge of doing something reckless-

There was a knock at the door. Doumeki turned to see Riku, not the servant he had expected. His aide had apparently decided the interview had gone on for long enough. "Your Highness." The title was emphasised by the way Lord Iwase's presence was ignored. "A warden has arrived with an urgent message."

Doumeki was already rising. "If you'll excuse me, Lord Iwase." It wasn't an apologetic formula.

The lord rose with him. "Of course, Your Highness." He still wore that small amused smile.

Doumeki left him to his brandy and followed Riku out.

"Minoru from the merchant district." Riku got straight to the point. "Lord Woodrow is unavailable and the captain sent Minoru to the Southern Ward."

Another body then. It was preferable to Lord Iwase's company. "The carriage is ready?"

Riku nodded. "And Lord Iwase?" His voice was bland.

"Say something has come up that require my personal attention. Give him my apologies and sent him home." It saved him from throwing out the man himself.

~x~X~x~

There was something familiar about the man. Kurogane stared hard at the dead man's face but death and the injury to his eye had distorted its natural appearance. He started going through the man's clothes. There had been nothing helpful left on the first two men but maybe this time there'd be something to identify him. "Was there anything else?" He started with the jacket, searching the pockets.

"Only some refuse." Hiroko gestured to the side of the alley where there was a small pile of odd objects, trash that was too heavy to be washed away by the rain.

Kurogane glanced over at the pile then turned back to the body. There was nothing in the jacket's outer pockets and he carefully peeled it back to search for any inner ones. His eyes narrowed as the sodden fabric slowly lifted, small flaps hanging down where holes had been ripped through the cloth.

"We opened up the drain further down the line and retrieved what we could." Hiroko continued. "But it had been raining for several hours by then. There wasn't much except for a few pieces of broken crockery, some coins and a lot of filth."

There was a scrapping sound as Youta shifted his weight, his boots scratching across the cobbles. The light of the lantern he was holding shifted slightly. "And the rats."

The image of small dead mice flashed through his mind. "Rats?" Kurogane stopped his search and looked up at the other man.

Youta nodded. "Used to watch them when I was a kid. They know when it's going to rain and seek out higher ground before the storms start." He glanced at the drain, a continuous glistening stream through iron grating. "You can get one or two that doesn't make it but not a dozen drowning at once."

If they did drown. Kurogane scowled. It smacked of the sort of thing he left to Fai. Kurogane preferred something he could cut with his sword rather than formless things that preyed on people unseen. "Fish one out." Maybe Fai could tell something from it.

Hiroko didn't protest, simply walked over to the drain. She peered down into wide channel of water for a moment then sank down on her heels and set her gloved fingers between the bars of iron, pulling up a section of grate. After pulling off one glove, she plunged a hand into the water. A fat furry body, water trailing from limp feet and tail, was lifted free. Hiroko matter-of-factly set it to the side on the wet cobbles and replaced the grate once more.

Kurogane got to his feet. There was nothing on the man. His clothes alone, of good quality and showing signs of mending, said that he was from the lower middleclass. A closer look at the body might reveal more but that would be left to the priests at the Ward. "Where was the blood you found?"

"Youta can show you." Hiroko picked up the lantern that Minoru had left with her. A grim look flittered across her face. "I'll stay here."

Youta cast her a glance but said nothing. He skirted the corpse and started back down the alley. Kurogane followed him. The ferret, which had been a dead weight while he had been looking at the corpse, suddenly moved. Kurogane looked down to see the ferret's small furry face was peering out of his pocket once more, dark eyes bright under the flap of material.

"What is it?" He warily looked at their surroundings, looking for some threat. The alley had twisted, reaching the fork and they took an abrupt turn, heading back to the lit streets once more.

The furry sausage twisted its head to look up at him and suddenly grinned. "Mokona is enjoying the ride!"

Surprise was soon followed by anger. The little-

"Here it is." Youta had stopped in front of a section of wall just inside the alley mouth, lifting the lantern to illuminate the uneven brickwork. He gestured to a darker mark - it was faded on the bricks, washed away by the rain, but was still visible on the mortar between – a spray of dark brown.

It was hard to believe that anyone had noticed it at night and in the pouring rain. But Youta had the habit of seeing things other people missed. It was one of the things that made him such a good warden.

Kurogane glanced out into the street from where they stood in the alley. The two paths were as different from each other as night and day. The street was wide enough to accommodate a carriage and a flow of pedestrians to either side. There were lamps, widely spaced, that lit the cobbles. It was that natural choice over the dark treacherous twisting alley.

His gaze turned back to the bloodstain. "Was this the only one?" It wasn't enough for the wounds that the dead man had sustained.

Youta shook his head and lifted the lantern, lighting the whole mouth of the alley.

An eerie feeling, a slight shiver, ran up Kurogane's shoulders and down his back. Now that he knew what to look for, he could see the bloodstains that splattered across the old brick wall. Cut by brick and remaining only in the sheltered mortar between.

Messy. Hiroko hadn't been exaggerating.

The ferret ducked back into his pocket.

"It's in full view of the street." It had always been secluded areas before. In the warehouse at the docks. For the second murder they hadn't even found the place where the man had been killed. But there had been no witnesses. The bastard had been careful to remain hidden. Until now.

"Someone must have seen something." It had been a messy death. And not likely to have been a quiet one, either. To judge by the bloodstained clothes, the killing blow to the eye had been the last one, not the first.

Youta lowered the lantern again, casting the blood stains into concealing shadow. "None of the people we questioned had. No one saw or heard anything. Or had any idea that there had been a murder." He glanced at the wall then back to Kurogane. "We'll continue questioning people tomorrow."

They might find something. Hopefully the bastard's boldness meant that he had slipped up some how.

Kurogane looked around at the walls again. The murder had happened here. But for some reason the body had been dragged into the alley and thrust into the drain. It couldn't be concealment - the blood in the alley had already prevented that - so it had to be something else.

He stood there for a moment, watching the rain fall, washing away more of the blood off the brick. Blood carried away by the water.

Water. The warehouse had been at the wharves. The second body was found _under_ a wharf, in the river. The wharves had been a common link but now water seemed to be the important element. Kurogane frowned. But whether that meant more than the bastard's sick worldview, he didn't know. It could mean anything. The Quarter's symbol was mist - changing water. Water washed things clean. It was also vital to life. It was almost like the bastard was trying to leave some sort of message.

Kurogane grimaced. Fai could worry about that. He'd rather focus on the flesh and blood man who was killing people.

And there was one. Despite the strange elements, it was the work of a living, breathing person. He could feel it. He'd seen enough bodies to know the sort of killer they were after. Someone who enjoyed it. Who, after being cautious at first, was now full of confidence and flaunting his work. Kurogane scowled. The bastard had already had a go at them and he wasn't going to let him have another.

He nodded to Youta, indicating that he'd seen enough. He followed the other warden as they retraced their steps, looking for anything along the alley floor. Something they may have missed. But the rain had done a good job of washing the place clean.

Kurogane's steps slowed as they reached the fork, suddenly aware that there was someone else in the side alley beside Hiroko. A wavering presence that seemed to flicker in his senses. His hand tightened on ginryu as they turned the corner into the dead end. All he knew was that it was someone that he couldn't recognize-

The chief warden looked up from under the edge of his umbrella and grinned at him. "Kurogane."

Kurogane glared at him. A second longer and he might have killed him. The chief warden had the uncanny ability to approach without him noticing. It wasn't every time but it happened just enough to irritate him. Kurogane didn't like the fact that his superior could slip past without him noticing.

The chief warden had turned his gaze back to the body at his feet. "So he's still in the city." Alastaire didn't sound surprised. He peered down at the body, rain pattering down on the umbrella he held.

"I thought you were unavailable." Kurogane's eyes narrowed as he crossed his arms over his chest. It had only been ten minutes since he'd sent Minoru to the Southern Ward to find His Highness and now the chief warden had appeared.

But the other man ignored the question. His eyes were now fixed on Kurogane's coat pocket and the little black furred face peering out of it. Apparently the appearance of the chief warden was enough to counter the ferret's aversion of the dead body. The thought irritated Kurogane. As did the grin the chief warden was giving him.

"Mokona." Alastaire crouched down so that he was on level with the ferret, narrowly missing stabbing Kurogane in the eye with one of his umbrella's spokes. "How's the leg?"

The little ferret assumed a pitiful look. "Hurts. Can't walk."

"That must be a problem." Alastaire sounded amused. He glanced up at Kurogane, a quick mocking glance. "I hope you have someone looking after you."

The ferret's eyes lit up. "Kurogane's taking care of me!" It grinned and reached up from under the pocket flap to pat the wet raincoat.

The chief warden was looking up at him, a wide grin stretching his lips. "I'm sure he is."

Kurogane scowled. He didn't like the way that sounded-

Alastaire's grin widened. His voice lowered to a confidential whisper that was just loud enough to be heard. "But if you ever feel like leaving home, you can come and live with me. I'd be happy to have the company."

Kurogane's scowl deepened. Just what did he think he was doing?

The ferret giggled and shook its head. It clutched at the side of the pocket. "I want to stay with Kurogane and Fai!"

"Ah!" Alastaire clutched at his chest with his free hand. "Rejected again! You're so cruel, Mokona." He grinned at the ferret and it grinned back. "But I still hope we can go drinking some time."

"With Kurogane and Fai!" It wasn't hard to tell the sausage was looking forward to the prospect. Glasses of liquor were reflected in its beady little eyes.

"Deal!" Alastaire held out his hand to let his fingers be clasped between the two small paws. He glanced up at Kurogane, eyes mocking. "But you'll have to get your Daddy to agree."

Kurogane scowled down at the ferret. It was grinning up at him, its little black eyes lit up in anticipation. He just knew it was going to ask him non-stop until he finally agreed. And with Fai paying close attention to it ever since its injury, the ferret would likely get its way.

His gaze shifted to the chief warden who was grinning up at him. Ginryu's hilt creaked as Kurogane tightened his grip on the sword. He couldn't strangle the ferret but his superior was another matter. It would be better to simply kill him now.

Alastaire stood, ignoring the way Kurogane's hand was gripping tightly to his sword. "Where _is_ Fai?" Despite his amusement the query had a serious, almost grim edge.

"Seeing his father." Kurogane's reply was short.

The chief warden's grin faded. "Really." He glanced down the alley. He was silent for a moment. "I was at Lady Harrison's celebration but I left early to confer with my counterpoint in the north." All humour had dropped from his voice. "They've been having trouble recently." He glanced back, pale eyes serious. "It might have something to do with our problem but I'm not sure."

Kurogane frowned, hand lowering absently to his pocket to still the ferret which was shuffling around now that its conversation with the chief warden was over. "In what way?"

Alastaire's gaze flicked briefly to Hiroko and Youta. "That's what I wanted to ask Fai about."

Kurogane's frown deepened. It had something to do with magic, then. His eyes lowered to the corpse lying on the rain-slicked cobbles. It looked like a simple case of blade work. If one overlooked the fact that the bastard was never seen nor was there any trace of him at the scenes.

The ferret had been moving continuously in his pocket - an irritating series of wiggles and restless shifting that Kurogane had been doing his best to ignore - but now froze. Kurogane looked down in time to see it surge out of the pocket. "Fai!" It was hanging half out of the pocket, small paws working.

Kurogane grabbed it before it could fall to the ground. The stupid sausage seemed to have forgotten it only had three legs.

The chief warden gazed down the alley. After a moment he called out. "You're late, Flourite."

There was movement in the shadows. Someone was walking down the narrow alley. Fai appeared in the edge of the light spread by the lanterns, dressed in the hooded cloak he had been wearing when he left that afternoon. "I was delayed." He nodded to Hiroko and Youta and moved to take the squirming ferret from Kurogane.

"How's you're father doing?" Alastaire asked quietly, pale eyes watchful.

Fai paused in the act of covering Mokona, now held in his arms, with the edge of his cloak. His mouth tightened. "As well as can be expected."

Freed of the ferret, Kurogane crossed his arms. Fai was quieter than usual. Something must have happened.

A curious expression crossed Alastaire's face. A mixture of bitterness and deep thought. "I hope his health returns soon." His voice was emotionless. It was hard to tell whether he meant the words.

Kurogane sent him a sharp glance.

But the chief warden was already following another track of thought. "Hiroko, Youta." Both wardens straightened at the sharp address. "It's near shift change. I want you to go to the closest warden office and start writing your reports. Don't leave anything out."

The wardens exchanged glances. Hiroko nodded. "Sir." They took one of the lanterns and started out of the alley.

The chief warden watched them go. He turned back to Fai when their lantern vanished from sight. "Do you sense anything?"

Fai's eyes widened slightly. The ferret stopped its affectionate snuggling and turned to the chief warden in surprise.

Kurogane's eyes narrowed. The chief warden usually avoided references to Fai's skills.

Alastaire's smile was marred by the look in his eyes. "I've been informed that there's more happening in the city than we know." His eyes moved to Fai briefly, gauging his reaction.

Fai said nothing, not even moving.

Kurogane studied Fai's expression. Shit. He knew that look. Fai was hiding something.

The chief warden continued. "I don't like it but the source is impeccable." A slight smile crossed his lips. "We're going to have to explore all avenues in this case." The umbrella began to turn in his grip, handle turning in the chief warden's restless fingers. "All avenues."

It was practically an admission that there was something more to the murders that had been taking place. Kurogane scowled. So much for escaping the weird crap at the palace.

The umbrella stopped. "Let's see what we can find out." Alastaire grimaced. "Doumeki's probably already on his way."

~x~X~x~

1) In this universe, like in Japan, succession can go through someone who is adopted into family (i.e. through the marriage of a daughter or son, or even just adoption when there are no children) who has the same rights as someone with blood ties. _Muyoshi_ law (my creation) exists when a person has no heir and has chosen not to adopt someone to fill that position. In the invocation of this law, the Keeper of the respective Quarter is heir, not the crown.

~x~X~x~


	71. Water & Flesh III

ENTWINING FATES:

WATER & FLESH

III

A lone carriage rattled along the slick streets, an unmarked vehicle pulled by a pair of matched greys. It slowed and drew to a halt in the empty street under a street light where a man waited in the rain. The footman, a dark bulky figure in the raincoat he wore, jumped down from his perch next the driver and moved to open the door.

Alastaire stepped forward to meet the occupant, umbrella in one hand and a lantern in the other. "If you keep turning up like this, people are going to start thinking I'm not doing my job." His eyes searched the space behind the newcomer. He raised an eyebrow. "What? No companion this time? Don't tell me you had an argument?"

Doumeki accepted the umbrella the footman handed him and gave Alastaire a sharp stare. "I was entertaining Lord Iwase." And resisting the urge to throw the man out after enduring his foul insinuations. "Minoru came with the message that you weren't available." Though he had jumped at the excuse, Alastaire's unavailability had been curious. Doumeki gave him a sidelong glance.

"I was with Dory." Alastaire started walking, leading Doumeki up the street. They left the carriage behind and started up the street, the rain a light patter on their umbrellas. "Lord Durham's given him full access to all the records at the hospital." Alastaire was grim. "There was more than Dr Radford's unofficial activities going on." His eyes grew distant. "I think Lord Irving will be getting a visit in the future."

Doumeki was silent for a moment. "He was appointed by the crown."

Alastaire's smile was thin. "It will be a quiet visit." He glanced at Doumeki, amusement growing in his eyes. "Unlike your visit to Lord Iemura. Not even my scandalous behaviour at Lady Gray's dinner yesterday was enough to oust you out of the gossip." He sighed. "I suppose I should have known better. All that effort for waste."

He glanced at Doumeki, a wry expression on his face. "I've had all sorts of people asking what I was doing visiting Lord Iemura earlier in the week. Or whether I actually did go and see him." He raised an eyebrow. "There seemed to be some confusion about the matter."

Doumeki remained silent.

Alastaire rolled his eyes. "That's the last time I lend you my coat," he muttered. "Dealing with the ladies is one thing but everyone else as well..." He raised his voice. "I avoided admitting or denying anything. Hopefully it will cause enough doubt to deflect attention." His pale eyes were serious as he met Doumeki's. "You owe me. A new coat at least. I won't be able to wear that one again."

"Riku will take care of it." The issue wasn't about the coat and he knew it. "But I doubt you'll be bothered anymore." Doumeki frowned out at the rain. "I told Lady Fukao that I visited Lord Iemura with Kimihiro."

Alastaire had been amusing himself by twirling the handle of his umbrella between his fingers. Rotating it one way and then the other, drops of water spraying out as it spun. The umbrella suddenly stilled at Doumeki's words. "With _Lord Watanuki_?" His voice was sharp.

Doumeki cast him an irritated look. Alastaire knew what he meant.

Alastaire simply stared at him for a moment. "Sometimes I doubt we're related at all." He drew in a deep breath, staring out into the rain. "Your mother's going to hear about it. And this time it's going to be confirmation from your own lips."

Doumeki's mouth tightened. "I know."

"Do you?" Alastaire stopped walking. His eyes snapped back to Doumeki, pale frost. "I can't do anything about this anymore. You've given them something to work with now. It won't be long until they realize something else is going on."

Doumeki had stopped as well. He was somewhat irritated that Alastaire didn't seem to think he had thought it through. "I know. I'll deal with it when it happens."

Alastaire stared at him, the rain falling softly around them. A look of exasperation slid across his face. "I'll do what I can." He started walking again. "At least Lord Watanuki's good at keeping out of sight. I don't think anyone noticed when he returned to the Northern Ward a few days ago."

Delivering the Gozen service and visiting Lady Halstead. Doumeki had been unable to go with him, carrying out the last rites for Lady Okabe. It had been a sudden death, the ceremony hastily convened, and Doumeki had had no choice but to let Kimihiro go without him.

"I suppose it's a good thing that you chose Lord Watanuki." Alastaire was thoughtful. "If you were seeing a woman, they'd be jumping to conclusions." He turned his head and flashed a grin. "The ladies will help us there - they won't allow His Highness be seen as uninterested in the ladies." The umbrella began twirling again. "It helps that you're Keeper of the Southern Ward as well. People will believe that you've been seeing him as part of your duties - and they won't blame you for trying to keep it quiet either." He frowned. "There's only the problem of his reputation."

"I've asked Katsurou to look into it." Doumeki's reply was distracted. He was eyeing their surroundings cautiously. The streets had narrowed, the streetlights becoming spaced further apart. Without the lantern Alastaire held, it would have been dangerous to navigate the slippery and increasingly uneven pavement. Even with it, the rain limited their sight.

"Katsurou." Alastaire was amused. "That should keep the old drunkard amused for a while."

They had entered a shadowed section of street and Alastaire slowed, lifting his lantern. The mouth of an alley was suddenly revealed. "This is it." Alastaire gestured into the narrow side street.

Doumeki stopped and glanced into the dark walkway. There was a drain, water rushing through it in a strong stream that glinted and shifted under the lantern light. The sound was suddenly loud, a small tide that drowned out the rain. Doumeki stared at the flowing water for a moment then scanned the alley mouth, still not walking into it.

It felt wrong. Wrong beyond the knowledge of the murder that had been committed.

He frowned and glanced at the nearest wall. The bricks were darkened by rain but there were darker markings on the mortar and barely discernable smears across some of the bricks. His mouth tightened and he turned back to Alastaire.

Alastaire was watching him with an indecipherable look on his face. The umbrella was held still in his hand, deflecting the falling rain. "It looks like the victim was killed here." His pale eyes flicked to the barely-visible stains on the wall. His gaze turned back to Doumeki. "The body's further up the alley." He lifted the lantern slightly and stepped into the alley.

Out of sight. Doumeki followed him, glancing narrowly at the walls as they passed. "Not many people were out due to the storm." Alastaire walked the uneven, rain-slicked cobbled effortlessly, navigating the narrow street with ease. "No one Hiroko and Youta questioned had seen anything." He grimaced. "I'd be surprised if anyone had."

"And the body?" The blood on the walls in the alley mouth suggested it was different from the last two times.

A low grinding rumble sounded overhead. Doumeki glanced up involuntarily at the dark sky; a thin shifting sliver of dark grey framed between the solid darkness of the alley walls. Thunder. Another storm on the way.

Alastaire glanced over his shoulder. The alley was too narrow for them to walk abreast and use their umbrellas. "Messier. More stab wounds. Not just the eye this time." His voice became grim. "Either our man is becoming unstable or more confident."

Neither was appealing. "Anything else?" There had been a frustrating lack of anything that could be linked to the murders except for the bodies. If it was carelessness, then it was possible that something had been left this time.

Alastaire hesitated. A slight indecision on his next step. "Hiroko and Youta pulled some refuse from the drains but it's not certain whether it was anything left by the killer." He was silent for a moment. "But there were the rats."

"Rats?" Doumeki's eyes narrowed, his hand tightening on the handle of his umbrella.

"In the drain." Alastaire gestured at the grating running along the wall of the alley. "They'd drowned but Youta said that there shouldn't have been that many." His shoulders lifted in a shrug. "I don't know if it's connected but too many dead animals have been showing up with the bodies we've found."

Dead animals. Doumeki was suddenly reminded of the reason he had first gone to seek Kimihiro out. The dead animals that had littered the Cottsgrove estate had been the result of a territorial spirit. If it wasn't for the physical nature of the killings, Doumeki would have been inclined to suspect a supernatural cause.

But They weren't adverse to killing with weapons.

Alastaire must have been thinking on similar lines. "Youta suggested we call in a priest."

Doumeki cast his cousin a sharp glance.

Alastaire caught the look. A crooked smile tilted his lips. "It can't hurt can it?" His smile widened. "Besides, if we call in a priest from the nearest shrine it will help creating ties with the shrines like you asked."

Alastaire lifted the lantern and shifted sideways. A large patch of uneven cobbles became visible in the light and Doumeki automatically diverted his course around it, brushing close against the wall. There was a moment of resistance, a pull at his sleeve, and then a muted ripping sound.

Doumeki lunged for the cufflink as it tore free, grip on his umbrella loosening. The chill metal brushed his fingers then hit the wall and bounced off to fall towards the drain. It the hit the grating with a dull _clink_ and tilted sideways to fall between the iron bars. It hit the fast flowing waters seconds later and vanished from sight.

Alastaire had stopped. His eyes flicked to Doumeki's sleeve and then the drain.

Doumeki crouched down and tried to spot the cufflink through the rushing water. He could only see dark filth through the rushing water. The cufflink was nowhere to be seen.

Alastaire walked over and peered over his shoulder down at the drain. "It's gone now." He grinned. "It's an improvement. I've no idea why you wear those."

"It was a gift." From his mother. Doumeki hadn't been especially fond of them either, but they had still been from his mother. She would be upset when she heard he'd lost one.

He frowned and got to his feet, examining his sleeve. It was only a small tear - he pulled down the sleeve of his coat to cover it up. Alastaire was right. He'd never find it.

"Just wear one of the other pairs she gave you when you next see her." Alastaire was already starting down the alley once more. "She probably won't notice."

Doumeki was silent. He doubted it. His mother noticed everything.

The approached a left fork in the alley, the sound of the water through the drains louder as the water was forced around the turn. Alastaire suddenly turned and grinned over his shoulder. "I hope you didn't have any of those pork quiches Lady Turner serves."

Doumeki glared at him but his cousin was already turning the corner, ignoring him. Doumeki lengthened his strides to catch up.

The alley abruptly ended several metres ahead. The short length was lit by the lantern that Kurogane held - Doumeki could see the body Fai was crouching next to in a glance. The corpse was lying on the cobbles and he could see the grating that had been removed from the drain nearby. From what Alastaire had said, not only had the body been dragged out of sight, it had been half stuffed into the drain.

Kurogane glanced up, his dark red eyes fixing on Doumeki. "Your Highness." There was no bow, only a nod. But that was a great a mark of respect as Kurogane was likely to give.

Fai got to his feet. "Your Highness." His nod was deeper, more of a bow.

"Fai, Kurogane." Doumeki nodded back. His eyes fell to the body. "What can you tell me?"

Kurogane glanced down at the body. "The corpse is just starting to stiffen up." He crossed his arms. "I'd say he was killed, six, maybe seven hours ago."

Just after the storm had broken. Doumeki glanced at the cobbles beneath the corpse. There was no sign of blood. The area had been washed clean. It was only the protruding eaves that had protected the blood on the walls.

"There's nothing on him except for his clothes." Kurogane continued. "Like the others, nothing to identify him. He's got soft hands, though. He could be a clerk from one of the businesses around here."

"A check of the local area tomorrow should tell us something." Fai held his ferret in his arms, its head buried in the crook of his elbow. "We should be able to find out whether there are any missing clerks."

His partner looked disgusted. Kurogane wasn't known for his patience, a reputation that had already existed when he was in the palace guard. "As for the bastard who did this-" Kurogane scowled. "There's no explanation why he carried the corpse all the way here. Just far enough to be out of sight would have been enough."

"Carried?" Alastaire had been looking at a pile of refuse to one side of the alley but he looked up at Kurogane's words.

Kurogane's red eyes flicked towards him. "No scuff marks." He gestured to the corpse's shoes.

Alastaire glanced back down the alley. "It's a long distance to carry a body." His voice was thoughtful. "He'd have to be strong to manage it. Especially in this weather."

A lot of effort. And all to stuff the corpse in the drain. "Is there anything special about this alley?"

Kurogane and Fair exchanged looks. "No."

Doumeki studied the thick grating glistening in the light from their lanterns. "Where do the drains lead to?"

Alastaire left the rubbish and came to stand beside him, staring down into the drain. He was frowning. "I'd have to look up the city plans to be sure. Most of them end up emptying into the river."

The river. Where the first two bodies had been found. He could see the others were thinking the same thing. He turned back to the wardens. "Fai?"

The blond warden glanced down at his ferret briefly. "As far as I can tell, this is the work of human hands. This man died because of his physical wounds." Fai shrugged, a fluid movement. "Aside from the lack of evidence, the lack of witnesses, there's little to suggest anything else."

"What about possession?"

Fai's eyes flickered. "It's possible."

"And the rats?" Alastaire didn't seem happy with the way the conversation was going. But he was always uncomfortable when the supernatural was mentioned. Doumeki suspected it was because the unseen world wasn't something he could poke at and get away with it.

"From what I've been able to tell the rats simply drowned." Fai was frowning. It was clear he wasn't happy with the situation, either.

Thunder rumbled overhead. A portion of the sky suddenly lit up as lightening snaked across it. The rain suddenly fell harder, the impact of individual drops merging into a continuous sound as they hit the cobbles and the ceramic tiles. The soft rain had become a thunderous downpour. "Arrange for the body to be taken to the Southern Ward." Doumeki could barely hear his own voice over the deluge. The rain was gathering on the cobbles, a rising skin of water the wide drains were suddenly having trouble with. "Gather up everything else."

Fai nodded. Kurogane was already retrieving the rat and shoving it in a large canvas bag.

Alastaire reached out and touched his shoulder. "I'll take care of it." He had to shout it to be heard over the rain.

Doumeki nodded and followed him down the alley, stepping carefully over the flooding cobbles. The rain hammered down around them. Bits of detritus were getting sucked down into the drain with the sudden tide. At this point they could only salvage what they could. The rain had already erased most of it.

~x~X~x~


	72. Water & Flesh IV

ENTWINING FATES:

WATER & FLESH

IV

"Going to see Lord Watanuki?" It was a half-shout. Alastaire's words were teasing but his eyes were serious. His face was pale through the pelting rain.

Doumeki nodded. "You don't have to walk me back." They had reached the street and he knew his way back to the carriage.

"I'm here to make sure you don't slip and fall." Alastaire was amused. "If you got hurt, your mother would kill me." He grinned. "Annoying as some of the people in it are, I happen to like my life."

A few minutes later the carriage came into view, the horses standing miserably in the rain. The footman leapt down as he caught sight of them and came to stand near the carriage door. Doumeki handed the umbrella over as he reached him.

"I'll see you tomorrow." His escorting job over, Alastaire turned back and headed the way they'd come. Doumeki watched him until he vanished into the thick rain, a darker shadow melding into the murk.

Doumeki glanced at the driver who was waiting for instructions. "Lord Watanuki's mansion."

The man was swathed in a thick winter coat, a wide-brimmed hat pulled down over his head, dripping with rain, and a scarf that wound round his neck and half of his face. He gave a nod of acknowledgement at the order.

Doumeki climbed into the cabin as the footman held the umbrella to shield him. He settled himself onto the red velvet bench seat as the door shut behind him. The driver only waited until the footman had returned to his perch and then the carriage slowly started forward, the horses' hooves sounding on the slick cobbles.

Doumeki got comfortable for the drive. It was late and would be even later when he arrived, but Doumeki had made up his mind. He was going to visit Kimihiro and he wasn't going to let the time of day get in the way.

And if Kimihiro was angry at him for dropping in at the late hour... that would be a bonus.

~x~X~x~

The rain was a hammering fall of needles that stung as they hit. They hit the cobbles with equal force, sprays erupting at every impact, a watery barrage. The corpse lay out in the full force of the heavy deluge, the man's dead flesh unresponsive under the thousands of small blows, simply taking the abuse.

They didn't have anything to cover it with. And after the rain it had lain under before it had been discovered, there wasn't anything more to wash away.

Kurogane scowled down at the bag he held. A broken twig, the remains of a broken plate and a few coins of small denomination. A dead rat. It wasn't much to show for another death. Ideally they would have already caught the bastard. Or at least found something to help find him with the next body. But if this was all they had to show for it, it didn't matter if they found more bodies or not. They were exactly where they had started - with no idea of who it was and no way to stop him.

A trail of water leaked down from his hair and under the collar of his coat. Even with the wide-brimmed hat he wore, the rain was getting through to skin. If he'd thought it was going to be this bad, he would have worn his hooded cloak rather than the coat. Kurogane's scowl deepened. But it wasn't so much the weather as the conversation that was going on beside him that was making him grind his teeth.

"-and Mokona won!" The high-pitched voice cut through even the thundering rain. Kurogane wished it wasn't the case. "Daddy owes Mokona lots of liquor!"

Arrogant little fur ball. He'd already given it all had won and he wasn't going to give it anymore. But he could tell that Fai was going to take the ferret's side if he protested. Kurogane grit his teeth. He should have never started playing with it in the first place.

Kurogane could feel Fai looking at him. "Then it's a good thing that Kuro-Daddy has a lot of liquor." Kurogane could practically feel the bright smile that Fai was wearing. "There's plenty for both of you!" He sounded remarkably cheerful

Kurogane twitched, hand clamping around the sack he held. Fai always took the ferret's side. And it was even worse now that it was injured. He was made to look like a heartless bastard whenever he tried to get away from it. He should never have let Fai keep the furry excuse for a familiar.

"You've been getting on so well together." Fai continued. "Won't Kuro-Daddy be happy that you can walk again soon."

There was a muted ripping sound beneath Kurogane's fist. Walking? Kurogane was horrified at the thought of the ferret mobile once more. He'd only survived the last few weeks because it had a handicap - but if he was left alone with it at its full capabilities-

A shadowy presence entered alley. One with an umbrella and a lantern. Kurogane scowled as the chief warden returned. He skirted the corpse and made his way towards them, rain thundering down on his umbrella.

"His Highness is safely on his way." Alastaire looked unaccountably amused at the news. "Hiroko and Youta will have sent word to the caretaker so you shouldn't have long to wait." His smile widened. "Tell them I want Kashiwagi to look over the body."

"Why can't you tell them?" Kurogane was annoyed to be abandoned in the downpour. The chief warden had been late and now he was leaving again.

The smile turned into a grin. "I have another appointment." The umbrella turned jauntily in his grip. "It isn't wise to keep a lady waiting."

He should have known. Kurogane was disgusted but not surprised.

The chief warden's smile vanished as quickly as it had appeared. "Come and see me tomorrow afternoon."

"Not earlier?" Fai sounded surprised.

"You need to check all the clerks in the area." A thoughtful expression crossed Alastaire's face. "You might want to consult with the shrines - they'll know if anyone in their parishes has gone missing. That should narrow down your search." The rain ran off his umbrella, pouring down to create a watery cage around him. "It might take some time, though. And I won't be available until after lunch."

The chief warden's absences were now more common than his appearances, Kurogane reflected sourly. Usually when there was something arduous to be done. Though he had to admit that it didn't seem to affect the running of the wardens. The Quarter was much better managed than it had been before Lord Woodrow had come to the post of chief warden. His efficiency didn't make him any less annoying, though.

"I'll leave it to you, Kurogane." Alastaire grinned at Kurogane's dark stare. "Fai. Mokona." He nodded to the blond and his familiar. "I'll see you tomorrow." Without waiting for a reply, he headed down the alley again, umbrella in one hand and lantern in the other as he walked around the corpse and disappeared around the corner.

Kurogane glared after him, fists on his hips. Filled with the suspicion that he had just been landed with the task simply because the chief warden didn't want to have to wait in the rain.

Depending how busy a night it was, the caretaker could take anywhere from half an hour to several. Kurogane looked at the corpse lying out in the rain. The shelter they had found under the crooked eaves hanging over the alley gave them some protection from the downpour but it wasn't comfortable. Kurogane could think of better ways to spend the evening. Much better.

He glanced at Fai. The blond was listening to the ferret he held in his arms. It had a grip on one of his arms and was relaying the invitation for drinks that the chief warden had given it. The ferret had gotten wet at some point, the fur on one side of its face wet spikes, but it hadn't even noticed.

"Did Lord Woodrow say that he would pay?" Fai actually seemed interested in the prospect.

Kurogane grimaced. With the ferret _and_ Fai bent on going, he could already see himself stuck in some tavern drinking with the lot of them. He had a sinking suspicion that it would be even worse with the chief warden. It was bad enough when Fai and the sausage went out with him in public. With the chief warden as well, it would be pure hell.

He had been hoping that Fai wouldn't agree. While Fai and the chief warden worked well together there was always a thread of tension that sometimes came to the fore. And it usually involved Fai's father.

Kurogane frowned. Fai was adept at evading questions and Kurogane wasn't one to ask them repeatedly. But he had gathered enough over the years to know the situation. That Fai was the bastard son of a highly-ranked noble. And that while he had never publicly acknowledged his son, Fai's father had kept in constant contact with him.

Kurogane didn't care about the past or status. The past couldn't be changed and what you did mattered more than who you were. But neither Fai nor Lord Woodrow seemed to share that view. The chief warden seemed to want something from Fai's father and Fai wasn't willing to help him get it. The result was the sometimes tense moments when Fai's father came up in conversations.

He glanced at Fai. The ferret was chattering on as Fai listened, inserting a comment here and there. But Kurogane noticed the glances to towards the corpse in the rain, the grim expression he wore when the sausage wasn't looking. With his face half-hidden by his hood and the wet strand of hair plastered down his face, its colour darkened by the rain, he looked like a different person. And not a happy one.

The sausage fell silent. It glanced at Kurogane, dark eyes concerned in its narrow face.

He might as well get it over with. "What happened?"

Fai blinked, eyes flicking to Kurogane's face. He didn't ask what Kurogane was referring to. "We had dinner."

Dinner didn't take all afternoon and most of the night. Kurogane stared at Fai's pale face, his pale eyes. He was wearing that faint smile he wore when he didn't want to talk about something. Kurogane's lips tightened. "And?"

Fai's smile faded a little more. "It was practitioner business."

Magic. Kurogane grimaced. It wasn't something he was interested in. And Fai knew it. It was evasion again, trying to throw him off the trail.

"Ho the alley!" The words were shouted to be heard over the falling rain. The call came from further down the alley and within moments a tightly swathed figure appeared around the bend of the narrow street. A stocky man with a slight limp. He held a lantern, the light shining on the mist-over-water insignia he wore on his left shoulder.

Karel. The caretaker.

Kurogane left the shelter of the overhang to go out and meet him, the rain hitting him like a thousand small mallets. The squeak the ferret let out told him that Fai had followed.

The caretaker nodded to both of them before turning his attention to the corpse. Karel wasn't one for pleasantries. "Another one?" His voice was a deep rasp, the husky remnant of heavy smoking. He shook his head, eyes on the dead man exposed to the rain. "The poor bastard."

"The chief warden wants him delivered to Kashiwagi at the Southern Ward." Kurogane was glad to get the duty done and get out of the rain. One of his feet felt wet – he either had a hole in his shoe or the water was getting in anyway.

The caretaker nodded, his eyes still on the corpse. "We should be able to get there within the hour." He smiled wryly. "It's the first call for the night, hopefully the last." He turned his head back down the alley and let out a piercing whistle. "Hibiki!" The name was snapped out, his rasping voice turned into a sharp bark.

The caretaker's assistant soon appeared carrying the stretcher they used to transport bodies to their cart. He was a tall man, lanky man who looked much like the stretcher he carried: thin and pale. Hibiki nodded to Kurogane and Fai before laying out the canvas stretcher next to the corpse. It was done in a matter-of-fact manner that told of the countless times he had carried out the action.

"Here." Karel held his lantern out to Kurogane who took it wordlessly. The caretaker and his assistant took up stations at the corpse's head and feet then smoothly lifted the body onto the stretched in a practiced co-ordinated move. They then took hold of the ends of the wooden poles that had been threaded through the canvas, lifting the corpse from the cobbles as if the dead weight was nothing.

"Doesn't weigh much, the poor bugger." Karel commented, shaking his head. "Still, the alley isn't the best place for it." He cracked a black smile, showing yellowed teeth. "But I don't think your killer had that in mind."

"We'll walk you to the cart," Fai offered. With the ferret tucked in his arms under his cloak and only his face showing, he looked miserable. Kurogane suspected he wanted to get home as much as he did.

"Much appreciated. Hibiki's probably all right but I'm not as young as I used to be. I don't want to trip over something and break my leg." His assistant gave him an amused look as if to say it was unlikely.

Kurogane doubted it as well. In all the years Kurogane had known him, Karel had been as nimble as a goat. Still he could understand the caution under these conditions. Kurogane glanced at the drains overflowing from the heavy rain. They hadn't had a downpour like this for years.

It took several minutes to negotiate the twisting alley with its now overflowing drains and flooded cobbles. Karel and Hibiki weren't taking chances and progress was a slow steady crawl. The cart waited at the end of the alley, sturdy cob in standing solidly in the traces looking half-asleep in the rain. The stretcher was quickly loaded onto the tray and Karel slid off, even as Hibiki moved forward to take up the rains.

"We'll see him safely to the Ward for all the good it will do him, the poor bastard." He shook his head. "The city's going to the dogs these days. If there are any." He glanced back at the corpse lying on the cart. "I've stopped counting the number of dead dogs I've seen." He looked up at Kurogane. "You should go talk to Martin on Briar Street."

"Martin?" Fai sounded curious.

Karel nodded, his gaze turning to the blond warden. "Martin. Just ask anyone on the street and they'll tell you where he lives." He laughed, a short rasping sound. "He's a taxidermist of sorts. Crazy as a cut snake but he knows about all the dead animals in the area." He smiled. "He likes collecting them."

Kurogane grimaced. He hadn't heard of the man before but he wasn't surprised. Briar Street was further a field of the dock and outside their district. He had enough problems keeping track of the crazies he already had to deal will and didn't make a habit searching for any more. Though if Fai's interest said anything, he might have just added another to the list.

"Killing cats and dogs as well as people." Karel looked faintly disgusted. "I've seen a lot of things in my time but these days it's hard to say what's going to be next-" Karel was staring at the corpse, frowning. He suddenly bent down for a closer look and his breath hissed in as he lowered the lantern close to the corpse's face. "That's Morven." He sounded slightly surprised.

Kurogane's arm shot out to clamp on the man's shoulder. "Morven?"

Karel nodded, eyes still on the corpse. "Morven Koga. He works-" He grimaced as he corrected himself. "Worked for as a clerk at the accounting office for Lord Fukuoka's warehouse."

"Are you sure?" Fai was cautious even though his face was suddenly animated with the intent expression he wore.

The caretaker nodded. "One of Lord Fukuoka's dock workers died a few months back and Morven settled the account." He shook his head. "Pity. He was a decent sort. He even offered me a cigarette." Karel sounded genuinely regretful. "He had a nice lighter too, an antique piece. But I suppose it's long gone now."

They hadn't found it. Kurogane's eyes narrowed. Either the killer or someone else had taken it. "Where's the warehouse?" Kurogane had a suspicion but he wanted confirmation.

Karel scratched his cheek. "In the quay district, near the statue of His Majesty."

At the docks. Kurogane exchanged a glance with Fai. Perhaps this wasn't so out of place as they had thought.

And that explained why the man had seemed familiar. Fai had dragged through him almost every establishment along the wharves in the last few months. He must have seen Morven at some point. He could vaguely remember their visit to the Fukuoka warehouse.

"I hope you find who did it." Karel shook his head again. "There are too many bad people in the city now." He climbed up to sit on the perch next to Hibiki who flicked the rains. The cob's ears flicked and it started forward, picking up speed into a steady walk.

Kurogane watched it for a moment, until the cart became a dark shape against the lamp-lit grey curtain of rain. "We'll stop off at the office on the way home." He wanted to get rid of the bag of rubbish he held and get a drink.

"Whatever you say, Kuro-bun." Fai gave him a careless smile that was echoed by the ferret's grin.

Kurogane gave him a suspicious look - they had only been reunited for a short time but that had the ring of some sort of conspiracy to him - then started walking, glad to be traversing the wide brightly-lit streets instead of the treacherous narrow alley. He was finally feeling they were getting somewhere. Instead of wasting time tracking down the victim's identity, they could simply go and question his family and employer. There had to be something that tied him to his killer. Without a lapse in time, they had a chance of finding it. And then maybe they could catch the bastard.

He glanced at Fai. The blond was talking with his ferret, a smile on his face.

But that was tomorrow. Tonight he was going to concentrate on turning Fai's false smile into a real one.

~x~X~x~

Lucky you, Fai. Sex all night XDDD

~x~X~x~


	73. Appropriate Gift I

ENTWINING FATES:

APPROPRIATE GIFT

I

The pair of greys slowed to a halt in front of the entrance, the metalwork of their harness lit by the black iron lanterns that stood either side of the stairs. The footman jumped down from beside the driver and moved quickly to open the carriage door. Doumeki stepped out, polished shoes crunching on the gravel drive.

Lightning snaked across the sky lighting the stone dragons that guarded the mansion. For a split second they were cast into fearsome threats of light and shadow and then the light faded and they were simply dark shapes that marred the lines of the building.

But Doumeki's attention was for the windows, not the guardian statues that guarded them. There was no light in the master bedroom above the entrance but there were faint lines of light leaking through the thick curtains drawn across the windows of a room on the second floor. Kimihiro was awake.

The gravel of the drive crunched under his shoes as he strode to mansion's entrance. The storm that had enveloped the capital hadn't broken yet here.

A low distant rumble sounded through the sky. The next bolt of lightning struck out directly overhead, a momentary noon at night. The two unicorns guarding the stairs glared at Doumeki as he passed between them before softening in the lantern light. He cast them a glance but didn't hesitate as he climbed the stairs to the front door.

It opened as soon as he set foot onto the portico. "Your Grace." Hikideshi was opening the door to let him in. The butler didn't seem surprised by the weather or the late hour of his visit. He simply took Doumeki's coat, making no comment on the loose shirt sleeve that stuck out from under the cuff of the prince's jacket.

As he did so, Doumeki's attention was caught by the decoration on the butler's sleeve. In the past Hikideshi had worn jackets which were either plain or bore neutral designs. But he now presented a different sight. A subtle spread of black branches bearing cherry blossoms flowed across the fabric, a small gold sinuous body threading through them. A gold dragon. After eschewing his master's device, wearing the Watanuki coat of arms now seemed like a challenge in comparison.

Hikideshi met his questioning stare with a faint smile. "When a challenge is issued, it's customary to declare oneself."

A challenge. He recalled the bloody calling card Kimihiro had been so quick to burn. "Him?"

The butler's smile vanished. "Among others." His eyes met Doumeki's in a direct stare. "It's time the Watanuki house declared itself." He continued talking before Doumeki could ask him to clarify the cryptic statement. "His lordship said that Lady Amita had given you some cranes."

Doumeki studied the other man's face for a moment before nodding. "She did." He suspected that it wasn't an idle enquiry.

"May I see them?" Hikideshi was polite as always but the expectancy in his voice was hard to refuse.

Doumeki slid a hand into his jacket and retrieved one of the cranes he had taken to carrying wherever he went. He held it out to the other man.

For a moment Hikideshi simply looked at it. The intent expression he wore made him look like another person - sharper, more alive. He suddenly reached out to take the small paper piece. Doumeki had almost expected something to happen but the crane remained inanimate paper in the butler's hands. "You used three." Hikideshi's voice was distracted as he closely examined the red crane, slowly turning it over in his hands.

Doumeki said nothing, figuring it wasn't a question.

"Lady Amita never possessed great power." The words were soft, quietly conversational. "But she had practise in using what she had for remarkable results." The crane stopped turning and Hikideshi stared at it for a long moment. "They never did anything when you handled them before?"

"No." That time in the hospital had been the first. And none of the others had done anything when he handled them since then.

Hikideshi nodded as if what he suspected had been confirmed. "They only react under the correct circumstances." His dark eyes lifted to meet Doumeki's. "But it might be better if you don't test them-" He suddenly stopped talking, gaze taking on a distant cast.

Doumeki frowned. It wasn't a seeing gaze like Kimihiro's. He wondered what it was.

Hikideshi suddenly blinked and handed the crane back. "Don't test them with your senses or you might activate them." His eyes darkened. "And you may need them."

Doumeki accepted the crane and pocketed it thoughtfully. So they acted with the use of his latent powers. He had thought that it had been the cranes alone. But it would explain the way Kimihiro had reacted that day. He had been acting as if Doumeki had done something out of the ordinary.

Kimihiro. He suddenly recalled the reason for his visit. Doumeki glanced up the staircase to the second floor before turning back to Hikideshi. "Where is he?"

The butler's eyes were dark, his face impassive once more. "Looking for answers."

It wasn't quite the answer he had been looking for-

"Hikideshi." It was Kimihiro's voice.

Doumeki's gaze lifted to see the lord was walking out onto the landing above. Holding a heavy tome that his slender frame should have trouble lifting, let alone balance easily in the palm of one hand as he was. He walked up to the banister, lights picking up the rich embroidery and high-lighting the sinuous motifs that twined up the sleeves and panels of his robe. It was a muted glitter of gold line - small gold dragons against a blue so dark it looked black. It was stark and beautiful but Doumeki would have preferred something else.

Like cherry blossoms. While it was part of his crest, Kimihiro rarely wore the loaded symbol. With his mother's angry letters, Doumeki could venture a guess why. Wearing a reminder of his ancient royal ties would have been like waving a red flag in front of a bull. It cast Kimihiro's previous actions in a different light. Might he have been avoiding the queen's gaze as much as society's?

Doumeki watched the glint of gold dragons as Kimihiro made his way distractedly to the banister. His eyes were fixed on the open pages of the book he held, a slight frown on his face. As usual, his short dark hair was sticking up at all angles, looking as if he had been running his hands through it absent-mindedly. He was all lines and awkward angles.

A faint smile touched Doumeki's lips. A new robe. Covered in pale pink cherry blossoms with small gold dragons. As much his crest as Kimihiro's, covering Kimihiro with the royal emblem. His mother would likely throw a fit if she ever found out. Doumeki decided on the spot it would make a fitting New Years gift along with the garments he had already ordered.

"I can't find the passage-" Kimihiro abruptly fell silent when he realized not only the butler but Doumeki as well were staring up at him. His eyes widened with surprise, his fine brows lifting. But just as quickly his gaze was darting to the hall stand in the entrance to spot Doumeki's coat. "You're too late for dinner." The stare that was directed down at him was loaded with irritation. But Doumeki hadn't missed the troubled look that had passed over Kimihiro's face.

"I'm not here for dinner." Kimihiro's frown deepened at his words. "I'm here to see you."

It was definitely a troubled look this time. Perhaps Kimihiro's silence in the last few days had been avoidance.

Kimihiro's gaze flashed down to the book he held then returned to Doumeki's face. A look of resignation crossed his face. "Hikideshi."

The butler had already anticipated his order. "Tea in the library, my lord?" At Kimihiro's affirmative he gave a small bow. He glanced at Doumeki, a sideways slide of black that could have been a warning. "Your Grace." He crossed the foyer, heading into the west wing.

Doumeki watched him for a second then started slowly up the stairs. Kimihiro watched him impatiently but waited. It wasn't until Doumeki was standing on the landing next to him that he spoke. "So what brings you at such a late hour, Your Highness?"

Your Highness. Doumeki's eyes narrowed. "I'm hungry. I'll tell you after I eat."

There was a look of disbelief then irritation flashed to the fore. Kimihiro simply stared at him for moment before turning abruptly away. "The library's this way." The irritation was slipping into anger.

Not a sign of apology or deference. Doumeki found his mood improving already.

Kimihiro started off down the hall, the gold embroidery of his robe glittering under the ornate lanterns that hung from the ceiling.

Doumeki followed more slowly, letting a bit of space grow between them. Kimihiro had tucked the large volume he'd been holding under his arm. The action pulled robe tight across his back and along his side, hugging close to Kimihiro's back and waist. But it wasn't the smooth line that Doumeki had been expecting; the fabric was bunched in places - it was clear that Kimihiro was wearing something underneath. Exactly what that was kept Doumeki occupied for most of the walk to the library, even as he curiously eyed his surroundings.

They had passed the map room and were heading further into the west wing. Unlike the first floor with its stark black and white decor, the second was more welcoming. Instead of marble, there was thick carpet underfoot; a deep burgundy with borders of sinuous shapes, coiling twisted bodies that supported clawed feet and bared teeth. Dragons. And behind the twisting gold bodies were a skein of wards and ward lines scrolling through the weave. Dark wood carved with delicate branching lines was used as wainscotting below the pale cream walls. A closer look revealed small cherry blossoms nestled within the scrolling lines. Here the Watanuki crest was subtle but not hidden. Unlike the public spaces of the mansion which were only wards and austere black and white.

Except for Hikideshi's new livery. Doumeki stared at Kimihiro's back thoughtfully. He wondered if it had been Kimihiro's order or whether the butler had done it on his own initiative.

Kimihiro finally slowed and came to a stop in front of a pair of double doors. Doumeki knew immediately that they had reached the library. The doors were the same dark wood that had been used for all the doors in the mansion but that was where the similarities ended. The silver ward covered both doors, the bold arms and radiating ward lines arcing out to seal the doors together in one smooth surface. But there were no handles to allow entrance.

He glanced at Kimihiro who smiled faintly at his consternation. The lord reached out and set his hand firmly on centre of the huge ward.

It was like a sudden flare of warmth had erupted, filling the air. The same warmth that Doumeki had felt from Kimihiro's eye but now it was weak and filtered back. The silver ward flickered gold for a moment and then the doors were swinging inward, the ward broken cleanly in half. Kimihiro walked into the room and, after a few moments of staring at the doors, Doumeki followed him inside. The doors shut behind them but Doumeki only gave them a quick glance before turning his attention to the room they had just entered.

Most of the libraries Doumeki had seen in private residences were a mix of library, study and drawing room: walls lined with books while the open space they surrounded contained desks and display cases. The Watanuki library was completely different. Rows of shelves confronted him, their dark wood identical to that of the door, large silver wards trailing ward lines emblazoned along their sides. Nine wards set in wood.

Doumeki stopped abruptly. It was as if there was an invisible barrier, a thick blanket that hung in the air in front of him. It had his shoulders tensing as he confronted the warded shelves. It wasn't like the warmth of Kimihiro's power: it was cold, old and more threatening. Doumeki hadn't felt anything like it before.

Kimihiro had paused between two of the shelves, the large volume still held under his arm. He glanced from Doumeki to the shelves and back again. "This way." He started walking again.

Doumeki followed him, gazing warily at the shelves they passed. Hundreds of books were lined up on the dark shelves, encased by the ward lines that ran along the edges of the shelves. Some of the spines were blank while others simply bore small wards. Most had gilt titles that shone from leather. Doumeki could read some of them but there were others in foreign languages he didn't recognize. Not one of them had a speck of dust; the shelves and books were immaculate.

The shelves gave way to an open space with a more familiar layout. The walls were covered with more shelves and small cupboards that were miniature replicas of the doors that sealed the library from the rest of the mansion. Doumeki's eyes lingered on one of them, wondering what was sealed behind the heavy wards.

The rest of the open space was filled with furniture. A large table sat in the centre of the room, its polished wood surface covered with a number of small lamps and several books. Doumeki didn't fail to notice that the bookends that held them upright were in the shape of dragons, their heads turned back over their shoulders even as they crouched protectively around the books they held. A large desk sat close to the three large windows on the southern wall. It was covered with mounds of books but Doumeki could still see the stark ward that was set into its surface, pieces of half a dozen varicoloured woods set in a panel of rippling gold satinwood. A few metres away, near the fireplace on the east wall, two armchairs were placed either side of a low table.

But it was the display cabinets that filled the west half of the room that caught Doumeki's attention. There were perhaps half a dozen: dark wood frames holding thin panes of glass to form shelves and walls. The transparent boxes were different sizes and heights, some with shelves while others had none, but they all contained a variety of objects that, grouped together as they were, looked like the collection of a deranged eccentric. Ordinary kitchen utensils were kept next to priceless statuettes. There were several items which could only be classified as works of art: several exquisite wall scrolls, a formal silk kimono hung up in its own glass case, a delicate set of sake glasses, one missing from their number. But then there were items that no noble would ever put on display: ragged clothes, scraps of paper and cloth. Even a large metal fitting that could only have come from one of the public lamps in the Central Hub. One shelf contained a remarkable variety of keys that ranged from ancient to recent while just below it there were a number of necklaces set on black velvet. A door stop, a yellowed ivory gambling set of cup and dice, a long sword placed reverently on a stand, a number of button laid out on a lady's handkerchief - the strange collection only became stranger as Doumeki looked closer.

He walked towards one of the glass cabinets, trying to get a better look at an ivory cigarette holder that had caught his eye, only to stop abruptly a foot away. It was as if the air was suddenly filled with thousands of tiny needles made of ice. Doumeki raised a cautious hand to test it, but the feeling only became more intense as he reached towards the glass; the needles became knives, no longer warning but painful. And below it, there was another sensation. A dark hungry presence that made the knives benign in comparison.

He stepped back. The dark hunger vanished and the painful pressure of the wards vanished. There was only the faint tingling sensation that remained in the hand he had used to test the invisible barrier. Doumeki stared at the display case for a moment, eyeing its contents. Despite the silver lines that wound through the wood holding the glass, he didn't want to get any closer. He drew away and followed Kimihiro further into the room, warily eyeing the contents of the display cases as he walked past them.

Kimihiro had walked over to the desk and was setting the thick volume he had been carrying on top of a small pile on the centre of the desk. It was not the only one - there were several towers of books, small pieces of paper and ribbons book marking their pages. It looked like Kimihiro's search for answers had been going on for some time.

Doumeki felt a bit relieved at the thought. Kimihiro hadn't been avoiding him after all.

Relieved of the heavy volume, Kimihiro made a beeline to the two armchairs set close to the fireplace. Doumeki slowly followed, glancing back at the display cases that filled the west half of the room. Kimihiro hadn't even given them a second glance but Doumeki could still remember what he had sensed through their wards. The hungry menacing sensation that rested behind the glass.

Lightning flashed, reaching the room even through the thick velvet curtains that cut off the view outside. It was followed shortly by the sound of rain as the storm suddenly broke. Doumeki settled himself into the armchair closest the fire, facing the rest of the room. There was a plate on the table, a few pastries sitting untouched on the pale surface. Almost as if in invitation. Doumeki reached out and snagged one, taking a bite. It didn't taste the same as it usually did. It was good but not the same.

Kimihiro paused in the act of sitting to fix him with a sharp stare. "Are you always hungry or is it only when you come and visit me?"

Visiting Kimihiro always made him hungry – just not always for food. But he doubted Kimihiro wanted to hear that. "I didn't have dinner." The few pieces he had managed to rescue from the buffet table between conversations hadn't gone far to filling his stomach

Kimihiro frowned and sat in his chair. He didn't look happy but he didn't say anything more.

Doumeki took that for permission and helped himself to another pastry.

~x~X~x~


	74. Appropriate Gift II

ENTWINING FATES:

APPROPRIATE GIFT

II

Kimihiro was irritated. He had been close to something, he could practically feel it. After days of chasing down vague references and crossing out countless possibilities, he had narrowed it down to a handful. And just when he was reaching answers, Doumeki appeared. Arriving late and unapologetic.

But his irritation wasn't only for Doumeki's unannounced arrival. He was irritated at himself.

He hadn't seen Doumeki for days and seeing him suddenly was making him nervous. He now knew that Doumeki had a clear interest in him - the unsolicited intimacy that had arisen from the purchase of the sweet potatoes had made that clear. You didn't eat sweet potato off someone's fingers if you just liked them. But now that Kimihiro knew about it, he was left with the question of what to do.

Thunder rang out, ringing through the windows with a sound like a spoon hitting crystal. The storm had just broken yet but it must have been pounding over the city. He frowned. It wouldn't be safe to venture out in the city streets, let alone take on a journey outside the gates into the surrounding lands. But Doumeki had made to the trip to see him.

That only made things worse.

Kimihiro settled himself in the chair across from Doumeki. Trying to sort out his conflicting emotions and settle them into something reasonable. Almost as soon as he was sitting, Ryuu moved. The dragon had been sitting on Kimihiro's shoulder but now it ran down his chest to his knee, where it jumped to land lightly on the floor, gold scales flashing. Ryuu darted a few feet across the floor to Doumeki's leg and climbed up his trousers to his knee.

Doumeki stared down at the dragon sitting on his leg for a moment before offering some of the pastry he had taken a bite out of.

Was Doumeki's first instinct always to offer animals some sort of sweet food? A wave of irritation rose in Kimihiro even as he was trying to figure out why Ryuu had run to Doumeki in the first place. The construct tended to stay close to it master when it was summoned. Approaching another person was unprecedented. But Doumeki seemed to have some sort of idiotic appeal. Even Kimihiro wasn't immune to it.

...no. He didn't even want to _think_ about that. Kimihiro shoved the thought aside hard.

Ryuu contemplated the offered pastry for a moment then settled down and curled up on Doumeki's knee. A small gold curl that clearly wasn't going anywhere for a while.

The sight was slightly unnerving - no, Kimihiro was definitely _not_ thinking about the ramification of his construct's actions - but Kimihiro did his best to ignore it.

"What couldn't wait until tomorrow?" He might as well get the point of the visit. Once tea and more food arrived, Doumeki's explanations would only get muffled with food.

Doumeki's gaze had strayed to the desk and the piles books that covered it. "Tell me about possession."

Kimihiro's eyebrows shot up then lowered in a frown. This was the last thing he had expected. "Has something happened?"

Doumeki didn't answer. "You said possessed people are usually given away by their actions."

Kimihiro's frown deepened. He wondered whether Doumeki was thinking about Him and a way to find the goryo. Kimihiro wasn't comfortable with the idea of Doumeki searching Him out. "That's usually the case." He glanced at Doumeki but the other man was expressionless, revealing nothing. "There's a personality shift. The signs vary according to each person, from language change to fits to violence."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed. "Violence?"

Kimihiro nodded. "Monoke and goryo are usually motivated by strong emotions and seek revenge on those still alive." He paused considering what he said. "But," he started more slowly, "elementals simply like pain and death. Their actions are carried out for sheer pleasure in the act." And worst of all was a combination of the two, spirit and elemental combined.

"There's been a series of murders in the Southern Quarter." Doumeki finished off his pastry and reached for another one. "I had a practitioner who was trained at the West Ward look into it. He said there was no evidence of anything but human involvement."

Kimihiro was relieved and disappointed at the same time. It wasn't Him. Any practitioner would be able to tell at a single glance - He didn't believe in hiding his work. "He's probably right. The Western Ward produces skilled practitioners-"

There was a faint knock. Kimihiro turned towards the door and seconds later Hikideshi appeared between the bookshelves carrying a tray. Tea for two and a plate of small sandwiches and cakes. A rather large plate. The butler circled around the large table in the centre of the room and headed to where they sat. As he set the tray down on the low table, his gaze fell on the construct curled up on Doumeki's knee and a look of amusement flashed through his eyes.

Kimihiro frowned. He didn't see what was so amusing. It was only- His frown deepened as Hikideshi poured the tea. Nothing showed on his face but Kimihiro could tell the butler was close to laughter.

Hikideshi looked up and met his gaze. A brief smile crossed his lips as he set the pot down on the table and reached for the small plate that was now devoid of pastries. "My lord." Nodding solemnly he took his leave, not waiting for a dismissal.

Kimihiro watched Hikideshi's retreat, a flicker of irritation running through him. Sometimes the only thing more annoying than Hikideshi's ability to sense his wishes was his ability to take in a situation at a glance. And the fact that the conclusions he came to were usually right.

He picked up his teacup and made to take a sip only to set it back on the saucer as he registered the heat rising from its surface. Even if Hikideshi found his attachment to Doumeki amusing, Kimihiro couldn't. He had done a lot of thinking over the past week and not all of it had been on how He had gotten into the city. The chilling fear that had run through him as he contemplated the state of things had forced him to confront his feelings for Doumeki.

It was beyond the duty he held vassal to prince. It was more than friendship. Those conclusions had been easy to come to when he looked at it closely. It was only after that that things became murky. How could you define feelings except for comparison to what you had felt in the past? It was not the feeling he held for his parents and Hikideshi, though it was close in strength. The bond he had shared with Haruka had been similar but there was a real difference that he couldn't deny. And not one that he could put down to difference of age alone. Haruka had been a friend and confidant, almost like a family member. But Kimihiro didn't think of Doumeki like a brother which was common among close friends in similar circumstances. His regard had nothing to do with fraternal feelings.

Kimihiro frowned. He hadn't liked it the first time his thoughts had travelled down this path and he didn't like it now, either. He'd had few meaningful relationships in his life and none of them seemed to match what he had with Doumeki. The strong feelings he had once harboured for Hanako, though, before he had become aware of what she was-

It certainly wasn't infatuation. Kimihiro scowled down at his tea. He was too aware of Doumeki's faults for that.

"It's cooled down." Doumeki had taken a sip of his own tea and was now eyeing the sandwiches and cakes.

Doumeki had been watching him. Kimihiro stared at him for a moment before carefully picking up his cup and taking a sip. He was right – it had cooled down. Kimihiro eyed Doumeki over the rim of his cup, watching as the prince helped himself to some sandwiches.

With what he had eliminated, the remaining prospects hadn't been appealing. With the bonds of duty, friendship and family ruled out there were few choices. And if it wasn't infatuation, that left-

Love.

He had almost died right then of horrified shock. He loved Doumeki? The shock had been immediately followed by vehement denial. And reassuring rationalizations had followed to support his refusal. True, Doumeki's concern and consideration warmed him but wouldn't he have felt that of anyone? The pleasure he got from Doumeki's company and the comfort from his touch, could be explained by comradeship, couldn't it? And had he ever thought of Doumeki as an object of sexual desire? The thought was ludicrous. And it reassured him the most. He had been thinking romantic love and that didn't apply at all.

But didn't love cover so many emotions? So many regards for so many different people under different circumstances. Viewed that way, love seemed to fit well. But to admit that he loved Doumeki didn't sit well at all. It made him nervous and slightly ill to contemplate. It _sounded_ too much like something else.

So no, he didn't love Doumeki. But it was something similar. And that was bad enough.

Kimihiro glanced at Doumeki. The other man was eating a sandwich as he stared thoughtfully across the room. Oblivious to Kimihiro's thoughts. Once the sight of him would have only sent him into a fit of irritation. The irritation was still there but it was muted, tempered with a sort of resigned acceptance, even fondness.

Kimihiro bit down on his lip. How had this happened? How had it turned from carefully bounded friendship to this? He picked up his cup, to stop himself from pulling at his hair. It was an impossible situation. Except for friendship what was there that could possibly be between them? Not that he wanted anything more. Doumeki seemed to think that there could be more but Doumeki was an idiot. Under the circumstances he couldn't be suggesting anything honourable. Unless-

The only thing that left was- Kimihiro's sip suddenly turned unto a large gulp, the hot tea filling his mouth. He swallowed it quickly, trying not to choke. But Doumeki couldn't suggest that-

Idiot. _He_ was the idiot. A few touches and he was thinking of all sorts of things. But Doumeki hadn't actually _said_ anything. And being Doumeki, his behaviour could mean almost anything. Kimihiro glanced at him over his teacup. Doumeki had already finished off a cake and was reaching for another. If Doumeki was anything he was blunt. If he had meant anything by his actions then surely he would have said something. Bluntly.

And it wasn't as if Kimihiro was ready to accept anything like- well like whatever Doumeki might be considering.

Kimihiro's gaze was suddenly caught by Doumeki's hand as it reached towards the tray of cakes. Or more precisely Doumeki's sleeve. The cuff of his shirt had brushed the edge of the platter where usually it hugged close to the prince's wrist. The problem was only highlighted when a small cake was popped into Doumeki's mouth.

"You're missing a cufflink." There was some surprise in his voice. Despite his horrible interpersonal skills, Doumeki was always immaculately dressed. Kimihiro suspected that it was owed to some well-meaning, over-worked servant but whatever the truth of the matter, a missing cufflink was an aberration.

Doumeki blinked, clearly not expecting that observation. His gold eyes slid from Kimihiro to the sleeve in question. "I lost it."

Kimihiro's eyes were automatically scanning the floor, looking for a glint of metal when Doumeki shrugged. "I lost my favourite pair long ago." As if that meant the current loss was immaterial.

Kimihiro fell silent, eyes on the remaining cufflink. It was bright gold, at least 22 carats, with a recessed pattern of thin lines of onyx and small diamonds. Expensive, befitting Doumeki's status, but not very attractive. He had to admit the loss of its partner wasn't a great one. It didn't really match Doumeki's clothes, or Doumeki himself for that matter. What he really needed was something that would match him rather than the clothes he was wearing-

Kimihiro cut himself off, feeling somewhat horrified. He couldn't be thinking of buying something for Doumeki, could he? True, New Years was fast approaching but-

What Doumeki had said suddenly sunk in. "You lost it?" The words left his lips slowly, the thoughts behind them racing in contrasting urgency.

"Hn." The affirmative was uttered through a mouthful of cake.

Kimihiro automatically frowned at him even as his thoughts raced. It wasn't a well-loved object but it was still something that belonged to Doumeki. Something that-

"You can't just go out like that." There was disapproval thick in his voice.

Doumeki, still chewing, simply looked at him. He didn't seem to see a problem.

Kimihiro reflected that Doumeki probably wouldn't care if he was out in public stark naked, but it didn't have the heat it normally would have. "I'll lend you a pair."

Doumeki stopped eating. His pale eyes suddenly pinned Kimihiro with a searching stare.

The doors to the library opened, a faint whisper of power, shortly followed by Hikideshi's appearance between the shelves as he quietly entered the room. His gaze briefly flicked over Doumeki, settling briefly on the construct sitting on his knee, and then focused firmly on Kimihiro. He walked over the table, stopping at Kimihiro's side. "My lord?" Hikideshi wasn't even trying to hide that he knew he had been needed.

"His Highness has lost a cufflink." Kimihiro was aware of the frown Doumeki was wearing but he didn't care. He wasn't going to be moved from his decision.

Hikideshi's eyes flicked to the loose cuff and narrowed momentarily into dark slits. "Of course." His voice was bland. He bowed. "I will retrieve replacements immediately." He didn't give the impression of hurrying but he was already disappearing between the shelves.

Doumeki watched the butler's departure then turned a questioning stare on Kimihiro.

Kimihiro's eyes lowered to Doumeki's knee. The gold dragon was still curled up, unmoved by the tension in the room. "You're aware of the connection between pairs of objects?"

Comprehension lit Doumeki's eyes. He stared down at the missing cuff.

"Pairs of objects have a strong connection. They have either been made out of the same materials, both having equal connected power; or one is the copy of the other, gathering power from the original." It was hard to say what the case was with the cufflinks. "In both cases to have one is to have influence over the other." The thought of what could be done with one of Doumeki's cufflinks bloomed horribly in his mind, the various possibilities multiplying with every second.

"And in this case?" Doumeki was following his line of thought.

Nothing if he had anything to say about it. The ferocity of the thought surprised Kimihiro but he couldn't deny it. He wasn't going to let anything happen to Doumeki.

Ryuu finally moved. Uncurling to take a protective stance on Doumeki's knee.

Doumeki looked from one of them to the other, a thoughtful expression on his face. He seemed to have realised the connection.

The doors opened again as Hikideshi returned. Kimihiro took advantage of the distraction and called Ryuu back. As Hikideshi crossed the room, the construct jumped down from Doumeki's knee and ran across the floor to Kimihiro. He lowered his hand and the dragon darted up into his wide sleeve. Out of sight where it would reveal no more than it had.

Hikideshi had seen but gave no sign of it, setting down a small box on the table in front of Kimihiro. "This should be appropriate, my lord."

Kimihiro cast him sharp a glance at that but Hikideshi remained expressionless. Kimihiro turned his attention to the small box. It was unremarkable, covered in shark skin rather than the velvet that was now popular. That gave him a hint to what it contained. Kimihiro carefully lifted the lid and felt a slight shock when he saw the contents even though he had half expected it.

The cufflinks were plain but elegant, silver set with large unpolished garnets. They were old but in perfect condition. But Hikideshi had always looked after what little possessions he had kept from before the day he had linked himself to the wards of the mansion.

Kimihiro picked up the box and leaned forward to set it before Doumeki. "These should do for now. You can return them next time you visit." Hikideshi would want them back. Just the act of lending them to the prince showed how highly he regarded Doumeki. They weren't just precious personal heirlooms, they would protect Doumeki while he had them in his possession as well.

Doumeki picked up one of the cufflinks and studied for a moment before attaching it to his loose sleeve. It took only a moment, Doumeki's fingers moving with practised ease as they pulled the two edges of the cuff together and slid the cufflink into place.

Maybe it wasn't a servant after all.

The odd cufflink was removed and Doumeki set it on the table before picking up the second replacement. It was attached as easily as the first.

Kimihiro picked up the orphaned cuff from where it sat on the table. It was even uglier close up. "I'll hold onto this." It would be best if Doumeki no longer had the piece in his possession. The tie with the lost one would be further weakened.

He looked up to find Doumeki was staring at him, a slight smile on his face. It was irritating in the extreme.

Kimihiro scowled at him and pocketed the cufflink, slipping it into the pocket of his robe. No doubt if he was in love with Doumeki he'd think it was charming. But it wasn't. It was annoying. Just like Doumeki.

Doumeki's attention had returned to the cufflinks. He lifted both of his hands so that he could see the cufflinks better. He stared at them for a moment then glanced up at Hikideshi. "I'll return them next time I visit."

Kimihiro wasn't surprised that Doumeki had figured it out. He knew how old Hikideshi was and he could probably date the cufflinks just by looking at them.

Hikideshi actually smiled. "Your Grace." He bowed and turned to leave the room, pausing only to lay a brief hand on Kimihiro's shoulder.

Kimihiro stared after him, barely aware of Doumeki picking up the cufflink case and pocketing it. He wasn't quite sure what Hikideshi had meant by the fleeting touch. Distractedly he turned back to the table and picked up his cup.

Doumeki had finished the sandwiches. He picked up one of the small cakes and examined it for a moment before taking a bite. It must have passed his scrutiny because his first bite was quickly followed by another. His eyes returned to Kimihiro's face. "You delivered the Gozen service?"

Kimihiro nodded, willing to be distracted. "Lord Iemura received it safely. He's making plans to install pieces of it throughout the hospital." There had already been a marked improvement in the hospital. The gaichu had been eradicated from the hospital wards and protections had been added – subtly placed elemental arrangements and wards disguised as artworks. There was also a greater presence from the shrine, with a number of priests walking the corridors and visiting patients. Lord Durham hadn't wasted any time.

The yurei which had dogged his footsteps during his last visit had all gone as well, released from the knots of hair that had tied them to the place of their death. He had delivered the remaining knots to Yuuko and she had deal with the more difficult know that had been beyond him, freeing the dead as he had done for the living. Without the spirits that had availing him, his visit to the hospital had been unremarkable.

Doumeki finished his cake. "How was Lady Halstead?"

"Lord Iemura visited her early in the week." The day after Kimihiro had asked for his aid. "Her health is showing signs of improvement." Lord Iemura had done his best and it showed. The deterioration had stopped and Beryl was already showing signs of recovering from the cold she had contracted. Kimihiro hoped that she would be able to leave the Ward eventually. But it raised the question of where she would go. Lord Halstead didn't seem likely to prove the care she would need.

Doumeki reached for another cake. "And Lady Amita?"

Kimihiro's gaze flicked up in surprise. Doumeki met his gaze expectantly.

"I visited her as well," Kimihiro admitted. It had been a sobering experience. The last time he had seen her, it had been the foul influence of the golden brooch that he had seen. Now that it was gone, he had been able to see the physical damage it had done. Lady Amita was dying.

"She said that she wanted to see you again." He kept his gaze on his tea, gazing at the rich amber liquid. It wasn't all that she had said but rest had been for him. Everything she had seen, every change that marked the tilting balance of the city's defences. In the last twenty years and the twenty years before that. She had been exhausted by the time she finished and Kimihiro hadn't felt much better.

Doumeki nodded. "I'll go tomorrow." His gaze suddenly fixed on Kimihiro. "Do you want to come with me?"

"After breakfast?" Most visitors came to the hospital in the afternoon.

Doumeki nodded. He looked pleased, though it could have been the cake he was eating.

It meant accompanying Doumeki in public – luckily the rumours flying around hadn't connected them yet - but Kimihiro wanted to see Lady Amita again. He wanted her opinion on what he had found. She had known Haruka longer than anyone else and had her own extensive dealings with the second world.

And it had been her advice that had sent him on his extensive search of the library. The city's defences had been created to prevent malevolent spirits from entering. But He had gotten into the city somehow. Until Kimihiro knew how, the capital wasn't safe. Not from Him and not from Them. It was-

"New Years is approaching." Doumeki's voice jarred him out of his thoughts.

Kimihiro stared at him. While statements of the obvious were expected in Doumeki's presence, the sudden change of subject wasn't.

Doumeki had another cake in his hand but he wasn't eating it. It was gripped between his fingers in a firm but gentle hold. "Are you coming to the New Years celebrations?"

Kimihiro blinked. Not only had Doumeki stopped eating, he was staring at Kimihiro with that steady gaze he reserved for serious situations. "I haven't been invited." And never had been. Even in the years when his parents had been alive they had gone to view the fireworks from one of the parks, among the commons. He could still remember the thunderous bangs, the dying trails blazing through the sky. The thick smoke that drifted through the air afterward and the silence that had seemed so suddenly loud.

Doumeki wasn't put off by his answer. "And if I invited you?" The cake was held rock-still in his fingers.

Kimihiro stared at him, the shock of Doumeki's words echoing through his body. He had never been invited to the royal celebrations. It had been a mark of disfavour that had been taken up the rest of the court. And now Doumeki asked him-

He was serious. Of course he was serious, Doumeki always was. And now he seemed willing to throw their association into his mother's face. It was incredibly loyal. And very dangerous.

"Thank you for the invitation." It warmed him even as it worried him. "But I have to decline." For Doumeki's sake as much as his own.

Doumeki frowned. His eyebrows were drawn down in a sharp vee. It was a strange expression; thoughtful with a faint hint of anger. "So you're staying here?" His fingers moved, tilting the cake he held from side to side.

Kimihiro glanced around the room, eyes scanning over the table, desks, shelves and books. The glass cabinets. It was familiar, comfortable. Safe. Just as it had always been. But if felt less empty with Doumeki in the room. "I don't have any plans." But he was beginning to wish he had. That he could have accepted the invitation.

The frown disappeared. "Hn." Doumeki lifted the cake and finally popped it into his mouth.

~x~X~x~

Doumeki accepted his coat from Hikideshi, slipping it on and accepting the butler's aid to settle it properly. It was bone dry despite the short amount of time he had stayed but Doumeki hadn't expected it to still be wet. Not after leaving it in Hikideshi's keeping.

He hadn't expected Kimihiro to accept his invitation but he had still harboured hopes he would. Kimihiro's lack of plans had reassured him, though. Kimihiro hadn't refused because he was avoiding him. It was avoidance of his mother.

Doumeki frowned. That was another thing he would have to take care of.

He glanced at Kimihiro. The lord had followed him down to the foyer to see him out, wrapped in his thick robe and frowning faintly. He had been troubled earlier and the same thoughts seemed to have returned now. Doumeki suspected that he was still chasing the answers that Hikideshi had talked of. Trying to find Him.

"I'll come later in the week." When Kimihiro was less busy. He glanced at Kimihiro's face once more. He seemed about to say something but remained silent. Doumeki started towards the door.

"Wait." A hand caught his elbow, stopping him in his tracks.

Doumeki turned in surprise.

Kimihiro had taken a step after him. He met Doumeki's stare then coloured, his dark blue gaze flittered away again as he abruptly released his hold. "The royal celebrations don't begin until late. I'll be having dinner at seven." His eyes finally met Doumeki's again, his voice softening. "If you're in the area you might join me."

Doumeki blinked.

Kimihiro suddenly seemed to realized what it had sounded like. His eyes suddenly flashed. "If you can't feed yourself at a simple social gathering then you'd never survive on the food they serve at the palace." This despite Doumeki having lived there for most of his life. "I can't let you die of hunger halfway through the celebration."

An invitation. And a backhanded one at that. Doumeki suppressed a smirk, suddenly feeling better. "Thanks." He had been planing to show up anyway, whether he was invited or not. But it was much better this way. The gifts he had ready would be less out of place and less likely to be refused.

It saved him ordering Kimihiro to take them.

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro watched Doumeki step outside the protection of the mansion, asking himself whether he had done the right thing. Whether Doumeki had noticed how nervous he was acting.

"Should I make arrangements?" Hikideshi turned to Kimihiro as he shut the door.

Kimihiro eyed the butler warily. "Arrangements?"

Hikideshi's expression softened slightly. "For His Grace's gift."

Ryuu moved in his sleeve and Kimihiro lifted his arm so the construct could wriggle out and climb onto his shoulder. He wasn't surprised that Hikideshi had read his intentions. The butler probably knew what he was considering as well. But-

"Do you think it's wise?" He didn't often ask Hikideshi for guidance in such matters but he was now.

Hikideshi's black eyes lowered for a moment in thought then rose again. "Is it something you want to do?"

Wisdom wasn't the matter at hand, that meant. Yet it wasn't easy to separate prudence from his actions after having been governed by it for so long. His actions _did_ have repercussions and rarely were they good ones. To simply thrust that all aside and consider what he wanted- What _did_ he want?

He was acutely conscious of Ryuu's claws digging into his shoulder. "I'll be giving His Highness a gift for New Years." Something that had nothing to do with the supernatural world that they dealt with. A gift that Doumeki would simply wear because he wanted to. The thought pleased him.

Hikideshi smiled and bowed. "Then I shall make arrangements." His smile widened as he straightened. "Page two hundred and six, paragraph five."

The passage. Kimihiro had totally forgotten about what he'd been searching for before Doumeki had shown up. "Thank you." He started up the stairs, heading back to the library. But research wasn't on his mind.

It had been a simple decision: yes or no. And one of the most complicated ones he had to make so far. But now that it was done, he felt better.

And that told him how much he had wanted to ask.

~x~X~x~

The rain was falling more heavily now but not so much that the faint lights of Doumeki's carriage couldn't be seen. Kimihiro watched the lights disappear down the long drive. They were the only lights in the darkness - the lightning and thunder had already given way to a gentle steady fall of rain. The storm had passed by without any mishap, causing little damage. But he hadn't expected it to. The full anger of the storm had been reserved for the city alone.

He had made the invitation and Doumeki had accepted. Well it was a type of acceptance. Whether Doumeki would actually come or not was uncertain. The carriage lights vanished and Kimihiro let the curtains fall closed. But it would be best to act as if it was a sure thing. Doumeki wasn't likely to pass over a chance of a free meal.

If Doumeki _did_ show up it would be rude not to have a gift. But the truth was he wanted to give Doumeki something that didn't lead to danger or complications. Something that Doumeki had which had been given freely to him. He wasn't even sure what he felt for Doumeki but that was what he wanted.

He was frightened. It wasn't the cold flush of adrenaline that came with the sudden exposure of danger. It was the niggling, ever-present dread, the constant need to be on guard. The wear of trying to find out what was going on before He acted. Kimihiro didn't know how much time he had left. Or whether what he could do would be enough.

Kimihiro pulled out the odd cufflink and stared at it considering. He was vaguely aware of Ryuu shifting on his shoulder, leaning forward to regard it curiously, but his attention was caught by the glittering piece.

Despite all his annoying habits, Doumeki had never struck him as being careless. Despite his actions, or perhaps because of them, Kimihiro had learnt that Doumeki's cautious moments outweighed his reckless ones. Seemingly random actions were usually the result of careful thought, even if the logic behind them was unique to Doumeki alone.

Kimihiro frowned, turning over the cufflink in his fingers. The loss of the other half of the pair unsettled him for some reason. And not for the symbolic division it represented, though that was cause for worry in itself. It was the feeling that he got from looking at it, a foreboding feeling like a door unlatched or a fire untended.

It was possible that he was over-reacting. That recent events were causing him to see threats in random events.

But he couldn't shake the notion. The timing was too chancy. Something belonging to the Keeper could be used to reach through wards, especially if it was one of a pair and the other was in Doumeki's possession. It was a palpable threat. If Doumeki were to come to harm now, just as they were starting to pull the defences of the Wards together...Kimihiro's jaw clenched. It could be the chance that He was waiting for.

Or it could simply be a case of careless inattention. The other half of the pair lost and never to be found.

Kimihiro closed his hand around the cufflink and returned it to his pocket as he got to his feet. Ryuu shifted on his shoulder, adjusting his grip to avoid being toppled from his perch.

Now wasn't the time to be taking any chances.

~x~X~x~

The rain had finally eased and the merchant quarter of the Southern Ward was no longer marked with swift-travelling water and the stinging fall of rain. It was now a gloomy warren, the overcast sky cutting out the light that usually lit the streets and narrow alleys. The uneven cobbles were marked by random puddles that had gathered in the depressions and potholes that peppered the streets.

But even so there were people on the street, hurrying about on their business, simply lifting skirts and avoiding puddles. Aside from wary glances at the sky in search for more rain, an observer could be forgiven to think the people who bustled about on their errands had already forgotten about the storm that had raged the night before.

But not all of them had.

Long after the body had been removed and the wardens long dispersed, a man walked confidently down the alley. He came to a stop precisely where the queen's eldest son had walked almost fourteen hours before.

Forgotten, a gold cufflink set with onyx and diamonds lay half-hidden in a drain amongst the refuse that had gathered. A casual glance wouldn't have spotted the small mud-coated block of metal. Even if someone knew what they were looking for, it would have been hard to spot.

The grate was removed and the man thrust a hand into the drain, careless of the damage the mud and detritus did to his fine gloves. He withdrew it almost immediately. A slow smile stretched his lips as he regarded the lost cufflink that rested in his palm.

That was too easy.

**~x~X~x~**

Maybe so. But hard work is always rewarded.

Poor Kimihiro. Half his reasoning is going to go up in smoke soon XD If you thought this was fun...oh, you're going to like what comes next XD

Turning Point will be the next instalment.

~x~X~x~


	75. Turning Point

**ANONYMOUS REVIEW REPLIES**

**Mesonoxian:** Thanks! I'm glad to hear you're enjoying it so much :)

**Valine:** XD Here's your chance now :) Ahaha. I'm glad you liked it :D

**A.B.:** ch74) That's fine, don't apologise. You should be proud of yourself, I don't know of many people who would give fic up for lent. That's fine. Sorry about that ;)

**Aery-chan:** You've just made my day. And destroyed me at the same time XD

**Quartzrose:** I'm glad you're enjoying it! :D Thanks! :) Here it is now. Or should I say 'they'? XD

**rainystar:** Oh, come now. He's done pretty well. It might have been 74 chapters but it's been less than six months since he met Doumeki. We're practically flying along XD

**Alice:** XDDD I can see that XD At least he's not drowning. His struggles are cute XD I don't think he needs much encouragement :3 LOL. And vice versa, as well. That, you'll just have to wait and see. You're fine. You can ramble as much as you want :) You don't need to beg. I'm not about to stop writing any time soon. Supernatural Entanglements will be completed, at least. Thanks! :D

**Anonymous**: Fair enough. I do the same with Naruto XD Not my scene. Thank you! It makes perfect sense, actually XD I'm not sure about that. No doubt there are a few mistakes but most of them are where I want them to be. I do have a strange writing style, though...we'll just blame it on that ;D I certainly will. If only to keep you in the fandom ;D

**Flonnie B** ch 69) LOL. I can really feel the love XD It's wonderful that you think so highly of my little epic. Thanks! :D No worries. LOL. The caps lock gave it away XD.

ch 74) I'm glad you liked it. Of course, it wouldn't be polite not to. I think it's just a matter of signing up *points to top right hand corner*. I try to make it as interesting as possible. Good! That means I managed to describe it alright. Here it is now. You might. *amused* Doumeki's not beyond being sneaky to get what he wants. I can understand why most people don't - it gets a bit big if you start doing that. Though it does have the advantage of all the lovely characters you can include. I don't think this story would be the same without Kurogane, Fai and Mokona. I agree XD Don't worry about it. Thank you :) Ahahaha. You're certainly full of praise. I'm really happy that you think so. I just try to convey what I've got in my mind. From what you've said, it seems to be working :D A fair bit. I'm always researching for later instalments. What I write is mostly a mixture actual folklore and what I've made up. What's in the footnotes is legitimate but everything else is either loosely based on an idea or pure fabrication on my part. So unless it's in the footnotes, don't take it as fact, okay? ;) Thanks, it took a while to put together. Ahahaha. Not exactly. For that I'd have to take out all the CLAMP characters and replace them. It would make the story quite different. I hope you have a strong will to live XD Love for you too. They'll be back, but not for a while.

~x~X~x~

AN: And here we go. You've been waiting for a while for this (*sigh* time just slips away, doesn't it?) but I had to make sure I had everything linked up. A lot of things are coming together now ;)

ENTWINING FATES:

TURNING POINT

Akio set down the report she had been reading with a cold glance. So it was happening again. The cold hand of misfortune and folly was reaching for the royal line once more and now it was reaching for her son. Akio speared the paper with a gaze that should have flayed the ink from the page. She suddenly stood and walked to the window to stare at the landscape outside.

Her private room looked out onto one of the two palace gardens. In times that seemed like aeons ago, she had enjoyed to wake up to the sun streaming in the window. To open up the sliding doors and feel the early morning breeze, to inhale the scent of a new day. A day that was bright and full of promise.

But no more.

All the leaves had fallen, the glorious autumn ripple of gold and reds discarded. They were now a dried, shrivelled-up tide of brown detritus that shifted forlornly across the ground as the wind trailed through the garden. The skeletal trees and grey rocks conjured a bleak atmosphere that was only bolstered by the grass, bleached to a dark grey by the shadows of clouds overhead. It was dead and barren. Just as everything had been since that day.

Akio's mouth tightened into a thin white line as her nails bit deep into her palms. Within the span of one day, everything had changed. All that was bright and good had been overturned, revealing the canker than ran unchecked within the heart of the capital. She had nothing left but duty and her sons. And now there was a threat to both.

The queen's eyes narrowed as she watched the swirl of leaves under the skeletal tree, its branches raised broken fingers to the uncompromising sky. It had been a blow when Shizuka had left for the Southern Ward. Akio had intended for him to be king, to continue her task of protecting the empire when she was gone. A task she had been preparing him for most of his life. But after Haruka's death, Shizuka had turned his back on his duty in order to follow the footsteps of the older man. It was as if the preceding years had been for nothing.

But no matter Shizuka's actions, Akio still loved him. Even as he set himself aside from her, Akio kept an eye on her son, shielding him when she could. As the years passed and nothing happened, Akio had turned her attention to Shuichiro. It was clear that Shizuka was set on his course. He would not be returning to the palace. She had resigned herself to that and finally started to let him go.

And then Shizuka had encountered _him_. Gotten himself tangled with the remnant of a cursed bloodline whose survival had triggered every misfortune that had followed.

Akio had been furious when she had heard the news. The only reason she had not taken action had been the assessment that Shizuka had come into contact with the man by chance rather than design. She had kept a close eye on the matter when it became apparent that Shizuka was continuing to see him. Limiting herself to observance. That Shizuka had kept their meeting covert gave her hope that he knew what he was doing. Until he had recently been seen in public with the cursed man, not even hiding their association. Just like Haruka, he had become ensnared by the man.

And he had been digging into the past as well.

Akio turned from the window and returned to her desk. She would no longer block access to the files that Shizuka had been seeking. Let him find the truth he wanted so badly. Maybe then, he would start to see what she had shielded him from so long.

~x~X~x~

Doumeki stood at the glass doors of his study, staring out at the green vista of the garden beyond. The skeletal cherry visible on the rise overlooking the pond.

He had been standing here exactly a year before but so many things had changed, the circumstances couldn't have been more different. A year ago he hadn't known Kimihiro. He hadn't believed that the second world was real. And he had been oblivious to the meaning of so many of the events of his past.

Just as the world was about to change, the days beginning to lengthen once more, Doumeki knew that he had reached a turning point. A choice between the old and the new. An inevitable breaking point that he couldn't avoid.

After he had taken up his position as Southern Keeper, Doumeki had distanced himself from the palace but he hadn't cut all his ties with his mother. Each year he had attended the New Years celebrations, a statement that he was still aligned with his mother, no matter his new appointment.

But now when there was the question of whether he would attend at all. Whether he would publicly announce a split, a break from his mother's policies and the beginning of his own. In one sense it was the most momentous of choices. And in another, there was no choice at all.

"My lord."

Doumeki turned to see Riku standing in the doorway of the study, a pile of papers in one hand. Even today of all days there was paperwork. Doumeki walked back to his desk and sat down.

Riku shut the door behind him, an action that immediately caught Doumeki's attention. He quietly crossed the room and set the papers down precisely on the desk. "The report you requested."

The official report on Haruka's death. Doumeki cast a sharp look at his aide, questioning that he had heard correctly.

Riku nodded, "I only just received it." He was somewhat subdued. "I apologise for the timing."

It had been months and it suddenly turned up now. He stared at the sparse typeset on the smooth white page. A small line that marred the paper. "Thank you, Riku." It was a dismissal.

Riku bowed, and after one last slightly worried look, ebbed out of the room, closing the door softly behind him.

Doumeki cast one last glance out the glass doors towards the weeping cherry in the garden and opened the file. He skimmed over the introductory paragraphs, details about the date, time and attending guards, in favour of finding something that he didn't already know. It wasn't until he'd gotten halfway through that he came to what he had been looking for.

Doumeki stopped breathing for a moment.

_Within the palace grounds._

His eyes ran over the words again but they hadn't changed.

He had been told that Haruka had died within the Southern Ward. He could remember hearing the news. The shock that had accompanied it. He hadn't seen his grandfather for nearly a year but he had known that he was well. For him to suddenly be gone had shattered the wall of indifference he had erected. Despite the betrayal and increasing distance, Haruka's loss had hurt. Through it all, Doumeki had retained his love for the older man. It had been his loss that had provided the impetus to break free from the prison that was closing in around him.

But the truth was different from what he had been told. The official report said Haruka had died of natural causes in the Southern Ward. The unofficial report that had taken so long to obtain, said otherwise. His death had occurred within the palace grounds. The same grounds he had been unwelcome at in the last years of his life. Exchanges between the palace and the Southern Ward had been exceedingly chill since the death of Doumeki's father. The only interaction between the Keeper and Queen was when it couldn't be avoided, at social functions and in the course of political encounters.

But something had drawn Haruka back to the palace uninvited.

And while the unofficial report was silent on the manner of the previous Keeper's death, there was a suggestion that it wasn't simply a case of 'natural causes' suggested in the official report.

Doumeki's eyes fell on the broken arrow that lay on the desk. The person who had sent it to him had made that abundantly clear.

His gaze shifted to the report. There had clearly been a cover-up. And there was only one person who could have ordered the changes made to the second, official report.

His mother.

~x~X~x~

So now you know where but not why.


	76. Beginnings

AN: Ah, this brings back memories XD It's in Seasonal Watanukis but it's going up here, too. It reads differently now doesn't it? XD

ENTWINING FATES:

BEGINNINGS

Doumeki leaned against the door jamb, one bent arm braced up against the wood frame, his head resting on his fist. The lanterns had been lit hours ago and the soft glow lit the stone path. Further up the slope the skeletal weeping cherry was cast in stark relief by a ring of low lanterns.

"My lord." Riku had slipped into the dark room and now stood behind him in the shadows. A faint reflection on the glass doors was all that was visible.

Doumeki stayed where he was for a long moment. "The carriage is prepared?" He asked finally.

"It's waiting at the gate." The aide fell silent. Doumeki could almost sense the hesitation as he debated on asking the next question.

The prince decided to save him the trouble. "Are the packages I requested ready?"

A faint movement, a shifting of air currents behind him. "The winter garments you requested had arrived." A strange note entered the aide's voice. "The other is not quite ready."

So the Riku thought that the robe was inappropriate.

"Too forward?" He was aware that his actions didn't always match the proper decorum that was expected. It was yet another reason why he had given up the throne. Now when he needed advice on such things he relied on Riku's judgement.

A slight hesitation. "Such gifts are usually given in good season."

Doumeki's mouth quirked. Apparently so.

Still, Doumeki had been looking forward to watching Kimihiro's reaction to the gift.

"What shall I tell Her Majesty when she enquires about your absence?" Riku knew that there was nothing he could do to change the prince's mind and focused on salvaging what he could of the situation.

Doumeki finally turned around. A faint smile curved his shadowed lips. "Tell her that I have another engagement and will not be available for the royal celebrations."

~x~x~x~

_To His Royal Highness, Prince Shizuka, Keeper of the Southern Ward,_

_Your presence is required for the Annual New Years Celebration. Your prompt arrival is expected at 9.00. We trust that you know your royal duties and will not disappoint us._

_Her Royal Majesty Akio Bernice Yamoto _

The aide laid the missive on the desk and glanced out the window. The prince had already left and not to attend the New Years Celebration held at the Palace.

Riku pursed his lips and shook his head before he bent his head to the matter at hand. He would have to be careful to phrase the refusal in the most polite of terms possible.

~x~X~x~


	77. Preparations

ENTWINING FATES:

PREPARATIONS

Lord Kimihiro stared out the window of his bedroom. The room was dark but the waxing moon gave enough light to see the empty gravel drive. Even as he watched, a light dusting of snow began to fall. Kimihiro sighed and got up from the chair he had dragged over to the window. He started pulling off his robe as he walked towards his bed. It was late.

And it wasn't like he had expected that he was going to have any visitors anyway.

A ripple in the secondary wards stopped him in his tracks. Hands stilled on the sash of his robe as he closed his eyes and focused on the sensation. His eyes sprang back open as he realized that it was not the predatory incursion he expected but a familiar presence.

He turned and looked out the window again, not quite trusting the revelation. Thought it was faint there was clearly a set of small lights approaching. Lanterns.

A carriage was heading up the drive.

Kimihiro headed for the door of his bedroom, hastily retying his robe. His hand fell on the pocket and he hesitated as he felt the object within.

By the time he was descending the main staircase, Hikideshi had appeared and was crossing the foyer to open the door.

The door opened to reveal the prince standing on the portico, brushing snow from the shoulders of his winter jacket. The motion drew the eye to the light patterning of dark grey on black that intensified as it descended down the garment's length. The effect was interrupted, however by the large package the prince held in one arm.

"What are you doing here?" The question was out of Kimihiro's mouth before he could stop it.

Doumeki looked up and stepped inside with a shrug. "I have nowhere better to be."

Kimihiro was trying to parse that in terms of insult and compliment when the prince stepped forward and thrust the package into his hands. "Here."

The lord blinked, his hands automatically closing around the bundle. He held it gingerly as his fingers sank into the cloth wrapping.

Doumeki took off his gloves and started tucking them in his pockets. "What I wanted to give you wasn't ready so this will have to do." He paused his preparations to take of his coat when he noticed Kimihiro was still staring dazedly at the package. "Oi! Are you awake?"

Kimihiro blinked. He was still caught somewhere by the fact that the prince had actually come that he hadn't even begun to process the fact that he held a present from Doumeki of all people. "Yes?" And with that stupid comment, he began to unwrap the bundle in his hands.

The wrapping turned out to be a scarf. The fabric was sinfully soft under his fingers and he automatically identified it as fine vicuna (1) from the far south. He was so lost in the feel of it that it took him a moment to look at what it had wrapped.

It was a coat. In a heavier fabric than the scarf, intended to withstand cold winds and meet the demands of any future adventures. And as he held it up, he saw that it had a subtle working of dark grey smoke patterns with small dark blue dragons at the hem and cuffs.

"It's to replace the coat you lost." Doumeki's gaze was intent on the pale lord as he stared speechlessly at the garment in his hands. "And I noticed that you could need a scarf."

Kimihiro found he had to clear his throat. "Thank you. They're beautiful."

Doumeki shrugged and suddenly started taking his coat off again. He shrugged it off his shoulders and handed it to Hikideshi who had been waiting nearby.

Kimihiro's hand reached into his pocket and before he could change his mind he held the small box out to the prince.

Doumeki stared at him for a moment but Kimihiro, embarrassed, averted his gaze slightly. But he stubbornly kept his hand outstretched.

The prince picked up the box and simply held it in the palm of his hand for a moment before lifting off the lid. A pair of cufflinks, silver set with amber, lay on a bed of black velvet.

"You mentioned that you'd lost your favourite pair." Kimihiro started, slightly nervous at the continuing silence. "I know they're not a replacement but-"

The box was clutched in a firm grip. "Thanks." The prince replaced the lid on the box and tucked it into the pocket of his trousers.

There was an awkward silence for a few moments.

"My lord." Hikideshi had been watching the proceedings with his usual solemn expression. "Dinner is still being kept warm."

Kimihiro rounded on the butler, suddenly realizing how it sounded.

He met Kimihiro's horrified glare with an impassive face. "His Highness' place has also been set as you instructed."

The prince shot a sharp glance at Watanuki and then the butler. Slowly a smug smirk crawled across his lips.

Kimihiro debated briefly on his chances of denying the whole thing but quickly came to the conclusion that the prince would ignore all his protests. He was probably already thinking that he was always a welcome guest.

Kimihiro looked down at the scarf and coat he still held in his arms.

He was prepared to let it slide just this once.

~x~X~x~

Really, these two are hopeless *shakes head*

1) Vicunas have some of the finest animal hair produced by any animal *rolls eyes* And only I would throw in such details in a Christmas one shot.


	78. Plain Advances I

...ehehehe....

ENTWINING FATES:

PLAIN ADVANCES

I

It wasn't going as he had planned but things rarely did when Doumeki was involved. He was in a robe instead of the clothes Hikideshi had laid out that afternoon. And Doumeki was wearing formal clothes that Kimihiro suspected were meant for the New Years celebration in the capital. Something that worried him because Doumeki was now sitting at his table instead. He couldn't help wondering what had happened.

_Nowhere better to be._ Only Doumeki could say that when he had ditched one of the most important events in the social calendar.

Kimihiro speared a recalcitrant olive. Hikideshi had forgone the usual entrees and presented them both with salads while he went off to reheat the main courses. The look he had fixed on Kimihiro before he left the room suggested that he expected his lord to eat all of it.

Kimihiro glanced over at Doumeki. He was eating his salad with the same appetite he approached anything he was offered. Kimihiro was beginning to think that there wasn't anything he wouldn't eat.

But it wasn't the scathing observation it could have been. Despite his trepidations Kimihiro couldn't deny that he was glad that Doumeki had come. It wasn't quite what he'd pictured but Doumeki was eating with every sign of enjoyment and they were having a normal conversation for once. Well, as natural as could be expected. Doumeki wasn't much of a conversationalist.

"You didn't have any trouble with the roads?" Most were usually closed with the celebrations that were being carried out in the capital. The entire city tended to come to a standstill.

Doumeki thrust a piece of lettuce into his mouth. "I left early."

Early. It meant that he must have been on the road for more than an hour. It would have been a slow navigation of the city followed by the long drive out to the estate. Kimihiro chewed morosely on a slice of tomato. But Doumeki had still arrived late. If he was going to come for dinner, Kimihiro would have expected him to show up early. It could only mean that he had been delayed.

And for some reason placed dinner with him at a higher priority than the royal celebrations. Kimihiro reached for his glass, suddenly feeling uncomfortable.

He looked at Doumeki across the table. The prince had taken off his jacket, hanging it over the back of his chair, and sat in vest and shirt sleeves. The motif on his vest - an exquisite depiction of a trailing branch of cherry blossoms overhanging a rippling pond - looked out of place in Kimihiro's eyes. Without the jacket, it was a strange juxtaposition of formal and informal. Hikideshi had been feeding the dining room fire all day and the room was warm, but Kimihiro didn't think it was the temperature alone that had led to the move. Doumeki looked more relaxed in his surroundings. He had always preserved a certain level of propriety in his dress and manner but now it was like he didn't care-

Kimihiro frowned. Something wasn't right. He set his glass back on the table and slowly picked up his fork again. He couldn't place it but Doumeki wasn't acting like he usually did.

"You decided not to attend the celebrations?" Kimihiro glanced at Doumeki over his plate, watching his expression closely.

Doumeki paused, fork halting in its rise to his mouth. His pale eyes flicked up to Kimihiro's face. "I wanted to see you."

There wasn't much he could say to that. Even if it did make him slightly uneasy. Doumeki probably knew better than he did the consequences of his choice, yet he had still come. Kimihiro stared down at his plate, brow furrowed. He still had mixed feelings about that but he couldn't deny that was pleased, almost flattered, that Doumeki had chosen him.

Chosen him. Kimihiro could feel his face heating and fixed his gaze on his plate, poking at his salad. What on earth was he thinking?

~x~X~x~

The coat and scarf he had given Kimihiro had been placed to one side further down the table and Kimihiro glanced at them every so often. Doumeki was encouraged by the sight and even more by the cufflinks that were tucked in the pocket of his jacket. Kimihiro had given him a gift. A gift on New Years day. Cufflinks. A gift that was considered a personal present rather than something suitable for part of an obligatory exchange. He wondered how long Kimihiro taken to select them.

It was the first time Kimihiro had given him anything. Doumeki hadn't expected it and Kimihiro's embarrassment heartened him as much as the gift itself. It seemed to mark a change in attitude and one in his favour.

He wanted Kimihiro. More than he could remember wanting anything else before. And now for the first time he was freed of the last restraints that had held him back. The last thread that had held him to his mother's wishes had unravelled and snapped.

But he had to be sure of one thing. Doumeki watched Kimihiro for a moment trying to find the right words. In the end he simply decided to ask outright. "Can you tell me how my grandfather died?"

The question caught Kimihiro in the act of spearing a piece of lettuce. His hand jerked, fork scrapping his plate with a small wince-inducing squeal. His dark eyes slowly lifted to fix Doumeki with a sombre stare. He was suddenly subdued. "I don't know the details." Kimihiro started slowly, clearly reluctant to talk about the matter. "I was under the impression that his heart gave out." He fell silent, the previous animation wiped from his face.

Doumeki was starting to regret he had said anything. But he had to be certain. That Kimihiro hadn't lied to him like his mother had. "When he was at the palace?"

Blue eyes fixed on him in a startled stare. "The palace?"

Kimihiro hadn't known either.

Relief filled Doumeki with an almost overwhelming force. Kimihiro wouldn't lie to him. He might not say everything but he wouldn't lie. The thought made his shoulders sag slightly, releasing muscles he hadn't even been aware of tensing.

Kimihiro was exactly what he had always been. Honest. Whether it was in the irritation or annoyance that he badly hid or the sharp critical comments, Kimihiro wasn't afraid to speak his mind or even defy Doumeki when he thought that the situation was dangerous. Kimihiro was prickly, irritable and eccentric at the best of times but he could also be open, generous and sincere. He treated Doumeki like an equal despite their difference in status. Kimihiro was unlike anyone Doumeki had ever met before. And the only one who Doumeki could see himself spending the rest of his life with. He'd never be bored and always be well-fed.

But he was only one part of the equation.

Doumeki thought for a moment. "What do you want?"

Kimihiro had been staring at the table unseeing, fork hanging limply from his hand, but now he looked up again with a startled expression. "What I want?" He sounded confused.

"For the future." It was a common question for New Years but Doumeki was genuinely interested in Kimihiro's answer.

Kimihiro blinked. He looked taken aback, as if he hadn't been expecting the question. "The future?"

Doumeki nodded and took a bite of salad. Trying not to show how important Kimihiro's answer was.

Kimihiro's brow furrowed. "I suppose some sort of resolution. Safety for the city and an accommodation for old and new." His gaze turned to the windows, their large panes hidden by the thick velvet curtains. "Things can't continue as they have been."

It hadn't been what he meant. "And for you, yourself?"

Kimihiro's eyes turned back to his, a strange expression on his face. His gaze skittered away, his fingers shifting nervously as they gripped his fork. "I don't know."

"What about marriage?" Doumeki didn't take his eyes off Kimihiro's face. The other man had never mentioned anything but he suspected it wasn't something Kimihiro would usually discuss with him.

Kimihiro blinked again. "No." His eyes lowered to his plate, frowning. "I considered it when I was younger but as things stand..." He slowly shook his head. "I can't marry."

Can't. Doumeki frowned. It wasn't what he had been hoping for but Doumeki took encouragement from it anyway. "Then you plan to adopt?"

"No." Kimihiro's eyes rose to meet his in a steady dark blue stare. "I've already named my heir."

Doumeki's chewing slowed. It wasn't unusual for a noble to name an heir when they had no children. But Kimihiro was still young. It was early for him to have settled all his affairs. Though with his illnesses and the threats he faced from the second world it seemed only prudent- Doumeki's frown deepened. He didn't like that train of thought. He didn't like the thought that Kimihiro was settling all his affairs in preparation for when he was gone.

Kimihiro's eyes returned briefly to his plate as he poked at his salad. It was a slow, distracted movement. His gaze turned back to Doumeki, slightly hesitant. "And what about you?"

Doumeki met his gaze squarely. His mouth suddenly dry and his heart beating so fast that he could feel every pulse in his neck. But he didn't hesitate. "I want you."

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro's fork fell with a jarring clatter onto his plate but he didn't even register it. He felt rather faint. He must have heard that wrong. Doumeki hadn't-

"That's why I'm courting you." Doumeki continued.

Kimihiro choked. "You're what?!" He couldn't possibly have said that.

Doumeki took another bite, seemingly unconcerned by what he'd just said. "Courting you."

Kimihiro stared at him. Doumeki seemed perfectly serious. "You can't do that-"

Doumeki stopped eating, turning his pale gaze on him. "Why not?"

Kimihiro flailed for a proper reply. Why not? Doumeki shouldn't have to even ask. "It's not proper-" And that was the least of it.

Doumeki frowned. "Because I'm a man?"

Kimihiro blinked, totally blindsided by the question. A man? Same sex couples weren't common but they weren't anything to be ashamed of. And Kimihiro couldn't deny that Doumeki was rather attractive. If circumstances were different- Kimihiro felt his face heat up and ground his teeth. That wasn't the issue here. "It's because you're a prince!"

Doumeki blinked, his frown disappearing. "I abdicated." He was staring at Kimihiro, pale eyes studying him intently as if he hadn't seen him clearly before.

"That doesn't matter." Was Doumeki being deliberately obtuse? "You're still royalty. And you're a Keeper as well." Why was Doumeki staring at him like that? As if nothing he said made sense? "You have to protect your reputation-" Not to mention secure the succession of the Doumeki line. The thought sent a pan through him. And just over a month ago he'd been hoping Doumeki would get married and leave him alone. So much had changed since then-

"I don't care about my reputation." It was said quietly but seriously.

"Well, you should!" The words were close to a shout, Kimihiro was so angry. "Your reputation is as important as your title. Lose it and you'll lose the political connections you need!" And once that had happened there was no going back. The taint would remain. Vicious whispers, cold shoulders and insincere condolences that hid malice. A lingering hindrance which would hem him in and block paths when he needed them most. Just like it had done with Haruka.

Kimihiro felt sick at the thought. He had sought to protect Doumeki from this. But he had let himself become attached, to emerge from the shadows and walk by Doumeki's side. He had allowed himself to forget what it would mean and had gotten careless.

The sick feeling grew, mixed with growing anger. And that was directed at himself more than Doumeki. This was his fault. Doumeki's didn't know. Couldn't know.

Doumeki was still staring at him. Not saying anything, just watching him. Silently demanding an explanation.

"I'm a liability." Kimihiro said it more quietly. His eyes remained fixed on the fork lying askew on his plate where he had dropped it. "You must be able to see that." And that angered him. What could Doumeki be possibly thinking with such a declaration? "It-"

"I like being with you." Doumeki's words were quiet but they cut Kimihiro short. His eyes hadn't wavered from Kimihiro's face. The food on his plate was forgotten. "I'm not going to let what other people think dictate my actions."

The finality in those words had Kimihiro unbalanced, scattering the arguments he had been putting together to convince Doumeki to see sense. "But _courting_-" The word expressed all the disbelief and desperation that had been building since Doumeki had first said it.

Something shifted in Doumeki's eyes. "I want you." It was said quietly but clearly.

Kimihiro flinched at the words. It wasn't any better the second time around. It was worse. Doumeki's bluntness left no room for misunderstanding. You didn't court someone in order to deepen your friendship. It was for marriage, for lovers- A spark of pure horror flared to life. Marriage was out of the question and that left- Kimihiro's thoughts ground to a halt. His mind refused to process it.

Doumeki was still watching him. "If you're worried about my reputation, we'll be circumspect." He didn't look concerned by what he was suggesting.

Circumspect. The thought had a slight edge of hysteria to it. Kimihiro hadn't even known that the word was in Doumeki's vocabulary, let alone that he could exercise it. And the use of _we_- "I haven't agreed to anything!" He couldn't let Doumeki think that he was going to play along with him. "I don't even feel that way about you!"

Doumeki wasn't deterred by his protests. He shrugged, a movement sensed more than seen. "Not yet."

Not- Kimihiro twitched in his chair, anger flooding through him. Only Doumeki could be arrogant, so _self-confident_ that he would get his way. He hadn't even _asked_, simply assumed that Kimihiro would agree with him. The sheer gall! It was no wonder he was unattached - no one was able to put up with his high-handed behaviour.

Kimihiro certainly didn't appreciate the assumption that he would fall into Doumeki's arms like one of his fawning admirers. Just because he had some sort of regard for Doumeki that went beyond friendship that didn't mean he was going to get romantically involved with him. He didn't want to and it wasn't possible. Political ramifications aside, he had the promise he gave Haruka to consider. Like Doumeki - who seemed to have forgotten the fact - he wasn't free from the ties of duty and responsibility. It was part of the reason he had never sought to marry. And Hanako had been the other-

Kimihiro scowled. Trust Doumeki to turn a simple New Years dinner into a complete mess. He shouldn't have invited him. He shouldn't have even let him into the mansion in the first place. Then he wouldn't be here now with the problem Doumeki had thrust on him. Or have to worry about the conflicting emotions that were jostling inside him. Anger and horror were foremost but he was also aware of a curious part of him that was actually considering what Doumeki had said- He stomped down hard on it. He glared at Doumeki. "You're mistaken."

Doumeki just stared at him meditatively for a moment, seemingly unaware of Kimihiro's irritation. "But you do like me." His eyes flickered. "You wouldn't have invited me for dinner or given me the cufflinks if you didn't."

Kimihiro found himself cornered by Doumeki's sharp golden gaze. A wave of consternation ran through him, extinguishing his anger. Doumeki had _noticed_. "I hold some affection for you." The words sounded lame in his ears. He didn't even know what he felt. But he certainly wasn't going to tell Doumeki how jumbled his feelings were. He had never considered what Doumeki was suggesting. Doumeki courting him? Courting him circumspectly?! Her Majesty would crush them both.

Doumeki shrugged, as if his lukewarm response had been expected, as if that was no obstacle. "I'm prepared to wait."

"Wait? For how long?" The words weren't as biting as he had intended. The slight hope of waiting it out until Doumeki lost interest, barely conceived, was slipping quickly through his fingers. Doumeki would give up once he realized the ridiculousness of the whole thing, wouldn't he? But even as he thought it, he knew it wasn't the case. Doumeki was more stubborn than a team of mules.

Doumeki had picked up his fork again and started eating. His eyes fixed on Kimihiro in an unnervingly steady stare. "As long as it takes."

Dread lodged itself next to the queasy feeling that was roiling through him. As long as it took. He stared down at his plate. He wasn't going to give up. Kimihiro knew Doumeki well enough to see it. Nothing he would say could change Doumeki's mind. Not that he wasn't going to try. But until he succeeded, he'd be left with fending off Doumeki's attentions.

Doumeki courting him. It was one of the most horrifying prospects he had ever had to contemplate. Maybe he should fall on his fork and save himself the trouble of going through it. "Just what are you intending?" Kimihiro didn't want to ask - he didn't _want_ to know - but the words were out of his mouth before he could stop them.

Doumeki looked up from his plate. And simply stared at him.

Kimihiro suddenly knew, cold realization running through him. Lovers. He could feel the blood drain out of his face. That Doumeki thought of him like that-

There was a knock at the door and Kimihiro was jolted from his frozen horror. He turned to see Hikideshi entering the room pushing a trolley laden with covered dishes. The butler met his eyes for a moment, staring at him for a second or two longer than normal, then continued to wheel the trolley to the table. "Tsukeyaki beef." He set the largest dish on the table and lifted the lid, letting free a cloud of steam.

Doumeki's eyes had been following the butler and now latched onto the new dish. It was like the previous few minutes hadn't even happened.

Except it had. And he'd all but accepted. At least Doumeki wasn't paying any attention to his protests. And that's where it stood. He wasn't going to give into Doumeki and Doumeki wasn't going to give up. It was a stalemate that could drag on forever if nothing was done.

The thought unnerved him. His mind shuddered at the thought of Doumeki's idea of courting. Of Doumeki's idea of _circumspect_ courting. His blunt declaration was terrifying enough; Kimihiro had the dreadful premonition that his courting - or what he called courting - would be worse. Much worse.

What was Doumeki thinking? _Was_ he thinking? Kimihiro doubted it. He'd missed the New Years celebrations - one of the most important events on the social calendar - to be here tonight and Her Majesty wasn't going to be pleased-

Kimihiro's fork loosened in his grip. The uneasy feeling in his gut gave way to the sinking horror of realization. Doumeki had come to make his declaration. He _had_ come solely to see him. And if, _when_, his mother found out there were going to be problems that rivalled the presence of a goryo within the wards- Even worse if she reacted in the way he feared. She would do half of His work, unknowing.

What was he doing, letting Doumeki proceed? It was madness. By all rights he should still be protesting loudly and doing his best to change Doumeki's mind. But he wasn't. He had protested but not as hard as he could have. He hadn't even thought of kicking Doumeki out, which would have been his first impulse not too long ago. And he couldn't really explain to himself why. It was like he had been worn down by long exposure and couldn't be bothered to draw out what he knew was hopeless. Or maybe in part he wanted a chance to work out what he wanted-

Kimihiro blinked, staring down at his plate unseeing. Hardly believing that he had thought that. It had to be Hikideshi and Yuuko's remarks that had him thinking such ridiculous things. Why would he _want_ Doumeki to court him?

Hikideshi laid down something on the table in front of him and Kimihiro realised that the butler had already put a plate together for him. It had more food on it than he would have chosen. Kimihiro absently watched as plates were exchanged, the remnants of his salad for several thin slices of beef served with rice and vegetables.

Protests did nothing. Reasoning did nothing. It was beginning to look like all he _could_ do was rebuff all of Doumeki's efforts and wait until he gave up. Though that didn't seem likely. Not when Doumeki was saying things like 'as long as it takes'. He hadn't thought Doumeki would have continued to come see him after their first meeting, let alone staying as long as he had. But Doumeki hadn't budged from his side. Now he was starting to realize why.

Kimihiro glanced worriedly at Doumeki, a strange thought flitting through his mind. Just when had Doumeki started regarding him in this way?

"My lord." Hikideshi had stopped at his side. "Is there anything else you need?" There was a subtle note of caution in the butler's voice. His dark eyes were fixed on Kimihiro in silent question. He had likely felt some of Kimihiro's upset but had refrained from intervening. But the offer was there now if he needed it.

"No, thank you." Frightening as it was, this was his problem. He'd handle it himself. Somehow.

Hikideshi inclined his head slightly in acknowledgment. His eyes scanned over the table before resting on Doumeki. His eyes narrowed slightly, a small movement that Kimihiro wouldn't have caught if he wasn't watching for Hikideshi's reaction. "I'll serve desert when you're ready." The faintest thread of a smile creased his lips as Doumeki glanced up at him. "His lordship expressed the hope that you would enjoy his pastries."

~x~X~x~


	79. Plain Advances II

ENTWINING FATES:

PLAIN ADVANCES

II

_His_ pastries. It seemed confirmation at last but he glanced at Kimihiro to be sure. The lord was regarding his butler with an expression of betrayal. A look that turned into angry embarrassment when Kimihiro realized Doumeki's eyes were on him. He glanced at Doumeki then resolutely ignored the both of them, setting knife and fork to his plate.

He'd been right. The change in taste must have been when Hikideshi had made them. But Kimihiro had been the one to make them today. Doumeki considered the implications. That Kimihiro had made them for him. He wondered what it would take to get Kimihiro to make them for him regularly.

He watched Kimihiro saw through the slice of meat on his plate with more vigour than the task required. It had gone better than he had expected. For a moment Doumeki had thought that Kimihiro was going to snap spectacularly but after his initial outbursts, Kimihiro's protests had died, resulting in a fizzle rather than a bang. In a way it was almost disappointing. Or at least it would have been if it didn't work in his favour. Still, Kimihiro was far from reconciled with the situation – from his response Doumeki could tell that Kimihiro was going to continue protesting. Doumeki wouldn't have it any other way. He preferred Kimihiro's open opposition to any insincere acquiescence that someone else might have shown. It would be a struggle – everything was a struggle with Kimihiro – but that would be entertaining in itself.

Doumeki popped a slice of beef in his mouth – noting distractedly that it was good - as he watched Kimihiro studiously ignore him. He didn't mind – it meant he could stare at Kimihiro as much as he liked without any protests. He hadn't seen Kimihiro in a robe for a while and he was enjoying the sight. Especially since Kimihiro hadn't tied the sash as tightly as he usually did and the vee at the neck had dipped lower.

Kimihiro shifted self-consciously under his gaze. Adjusting his grip on his knife and fork, reaching for his glass. Everything but looking at Doumeki. Finally his eyes flashed up in an angry blue glare. His anger only increased when Doumeki didn't look away. In the end it was Kimihiro who did, his shoulders hunching slightly as he turned back to his meal. The move shifted his robes slightly and Doumeki watched with interest as more of Kimihiro's chest was revealed, a larger triangle of pale skin. He didn't try to hide it. Now that Kimihiro knew there was no point. He'd have to get used to it because Doumeki intended to do more of it. Intended to do more than stare.

Kimihiro twitched as if he had heard the thought. He looked acutely uncomfortable and his agitation only seemed to build as Doumeki continued staring.

Doumeki smiled slightly. The next few weeks were going to be interesting.

Kimihiro suddenly stiffened and thrust his chair back, getting to his feet. At first Doumeki thought that the building agitation and anger Kimihiro had been displaying had finally broken free. But then he realized Kimihiro was staring intently towards the curtained windows. And Hikideshi had stopped, one hand on the door handle, facing the same way.

Kimihiro shot a glance at the butler and then he was leaving the table, striding over to the closest window. Doumeki's knife and fork clattered onto his plate and he hurried to do the same. He hadn't sensed anything but clearly Kimihiro and Hikideshi had.

Kimihiro flung open the curtains to reveal the view outside. It had stopped snowing but there was a thin white blanket overlaying the grounds of the estate. It made it hard to see what had caught Kimihiro's attention at first but then she moved and Doumeki saw the woman who stood in the snow outside the window.

She was dressed in white, making her nearly indistinguishable from the snowy landscape. A long white furisode kimono was draped around her slender body, the long sleeves falling down to the snowy ground even as the skirts puddled around her feet. She was like a pale skeletal tree rooted in the ground, grown from the snow itself. Only her dark eyes and the long white hair that fell around her shoulders, lifting in faint gusts of wind, revealed her presence.

"Yuki onna." (1) It was Hikideshi who spoke. A glance showed that the butler had come to stand behind them.

Snow woman. A spirit that had many guises, all of which heralded events ahead. "What's she doing here?" He'd thought the estate boundary, even damaged as it was, still guarded against spirits entering the grounds of the estate.

Kimihiro glanced at him, surprised. "You can see her?"

"Aren't I meant to?" Doumeki had been under the impression she was a spirit anyone could see.

Kimihiro frowned and turned back to the window. "That depends on the reason why she's here."

As if on cue, the spirit suddenly looked up at the window. She stared at them for a moment then lifted a hand and pointed northward towards the capital, her sleeve hanging from her arm like a fall of white water. Her arm lowered and she suddenly disappeared, her form shattering into a thousand flakes of snow that suddenly spiralled outwards and disappeared on the wind. Within seconds all traces of her were gone, the snow unmarked where she had stood.

There was a few seconds of silence and then Kimihiro released the heavy velvet curtain, letting it fall over the window once more. He turned to Hikideshi. "A warning?"

"Perhaps." Hikideshi's eyes slid to the curtained window.

Kimihiro frowned and slowly walked back to the table. His previous agitation had vanished, replaced by a vaguely troubled expression.

Doumeki glanced at Hikideshi. The butler's gaze was still on the window. He had sounded unconcerned before but there was a tension in his body that bespoke of alert watchfulness. It reminded Doumeki of a guard dog scenting possible danger.

"Dinner will get cold if you just stand there." Kimihiro had reached the table and was staring back at him, a trace of irritation on his face.

His words had Hikideshi's attention snapping to him. The alert watchfulness suddenly gave way to the polite unthreatening presence he usually possessed. He gestured to the table in invitation. "Your Grace."

After a last glance at the window, Doumeki made his way back to the table and sat down. From what he knew of yuko onna, she carried news of the future. An omen for the coming year. Doumeki turned that over in his mind for a moment, thinking over the possibilities. He didn't get very far - he didn't know enough about previous sightings of the spirit - so he set aside speculation for something else.

Getting more information out of Kimihiro.

He studied the other man's face for a moment. "Do you like theatre?"

Kimihiro blinked at the unexpected question. But surprise soon turned into a look of wariness. "I don't dislike it." His voice was filled with suspicion. "Why do you ask?"

"There's a new opera opening in a few weeks."

Kimihiro's stare sharpened. "And that's relevant because?"

He had received an invitation that morning. It wasn't unusual – Riku sorted through dozens of similar invitations every day – but it had stuck in his mind. He hadn't intended on going but now it presented an opportunity- "I'm asking you to come with me."

Kimihiro's expression didn't change except for a further narrowing of his eyes. "Is this your idea of being circumspect?" He sounded disgusted.

Doumeki had expected a blunt refusal. This was almost acceptance. He shrugged. "I have a private box." Not one he used often but it was there.

"That's even worse." Kimihiro scowled at him. His expression changed, scowl softening into a frown. "I don't like theatres." His voice lowered, losing its hard edge. "They're dark places."

Doumeki didn't think he was talking about the lack of light. That had possibilities of its own. Doumeki filed the information away for later use. "There's a concert next week-"

Kimihiro stared at him. His eyes fixed on Doumeki with an irritated, almost hostile, glisten of dark blue. "I'm not going to go out with you in public for what is obviously a social outing."

That didn't leave much. But Doumeki wasn't going to give up. He had every intention of making Kimihiro his. His eyes fell on the scarf and coat, an idea coming to life. Maybe performances weren't the way to go.

~x~X~x~

To Kimihiro's relief Doumeki didn't bring up any more suggestions for outings. The rest of the meal passed uneventfully and as Doumeki didn't refer any more to his…amorous intentions, Kimihiro started to relax. Even when Doumeki gave him a knowing look when Hikideshi arrived with a plate of pastries, Kimihiro found he could ignore it with little effort. Maybe it wouldn't be as bad as he expected.

But Doumeki obviously had something on his mind. While his eyes lit at the sight of the pastries Hikideshi set in front of him, he was slower than usual to eat them. As soon as the butlers left the room once more, he spoke. "What would be a feasible compromise?"

For a second Kimihiro thought he was talking about courting. But then he remembered Doumeki's earlier question. "The freedom to maintain the wards." He stared down the table, eyes falling on the portraits hanging on the wall. "The Keepers might retain their official duties but their actions are still constrained. Without festivals, the freedom to carry out rituals beyond their Wards, they are simply hanging on." He met Doumeki's gaze. "People have to be able to follow their traditions freely. As things stand it's a passive impediment, but an impediment nonetheless. It's no good to allow the practise of traditions when the festivals are forbidden and people are denied permission by their landlords to attend their shrines to observe sacred days." It wasn't true in every case but there was nothing like the freedom that had existed a century ago. It made a difference. Without the festivals, the shrines were isolated not the interconnected web they were meant to be.

Doumeki hadn't changed expression but Kimihiro could see that he was thinking over his words carefully. It felt a bit strange to speak of such things to Doumeki. A glimpse of the ornate cherry blossoms embroidered across his chest was a reminder that Doumeki wasn't just a Keeper but Her Majesty's son as well. Kimihiro hadn't forgotten it, but the fact was brought back forcefully to his attention now. Speaking as he would now would be unthinkable in terms of that second role. But this was Doumeki. He had asked and Kimihiro was obligated to give him his real opinion.

"It wouldn't be a complete return that some of the Traditionalists argue." Their wish to return to bygone days hurt their cause more than it aided them. "No imposition on others. Just the freedom for those who wish to participate." He thought for a moment of the threats that people faced unaware. "Ideally there would spring up some awareness of the need for precautions." Like Wards. Ignorance was partly responsible for the deterioration of the hospital. It was becoming increasingly clear that the Keepers couldn't monitor the entire city alone. "At least there should be more people who are able to monitor the changes and report a situation when it needs attention." The current Wardens weren't filling the gap their predecessors had left. If people knew what existed, they would be better prepared to face what they encountered if they ran into an inhabitant of the second world. Too many of the people who came to see him could have avoided the situation they found themselves in if they knew what precautions to take. Kimihiro frowned. And they'd be less likely to fall for the charlatans who called themselves practitioners in the capital. With some of the stories he'd heard, it was no surprise that genuine practitioners were viewed with suspicion.

Doumeki took a bite of pastry, spilling flakes over his plate and onto the tablecloth. "If the festivals are reinstated, it might lead to other changes."

Kimihiro frowned at the flakes scattered on the table, white on burgundy. It was a small miracle that Doumeki hadn't made a mess earlier. "Possibly." If the festivals were reinstated then there would be the momentum to resurrect other rites. But first they needed the agreement of east and west. "Until then we have to use the resources we have to guarantee the Wards and the shrines." And the roads. But they were anchored by the dosojin and small shrines that studded their lengths. As long as they remained, the roads were secure.

Doumeki finished off his last pastry, frowning.

"I haven't succeeded in getting an audience yet." Kimihiro pre-empted Doumeki's next question. "I'm not sure how long it will take."

Doumeki's eyes flicked back to him. "What else can we do in the mean time?" He continued before Kimihiro could speak. "Aside from the festivals."

It suddenly dawned on Kimihiro that Doumeki might not just be asking for the sake of the festivals. That he was considering steps beyond the securing the capital. Kimihiro frowned. The casual ease, the abrupt declaration of his affections- Kimihiro's frown deepened. And now this. Something had changed.

"The commons still hold strongly to the old beliefs." Kimihiro started slowly. For some reason, he felt like he needed to choose his words with care. "_Kamidana_ (2) can be found in almost every household. Markets and local festivals are still held on shrine grounds." Where they were allowed. Most survived only because their true functions were disguised. "Many of the trades of the city secretly provide financial support for the shrines dedicated to the spirit they revere." It was part of the reason why some shrines still existed. "There are even some who have taken it upon themselves to maintain the dosojin and roadside shrines on their own initiative." Individuals and small groups that worked in isolation.

"While the numbers who follow them may have dwindled, the old ways are still strongly held." The signs were there to be seen. But Doumeki, who had lived within the palace for most of his life and the Southern Ward for the last few years, wasn't in a position to see them. Nor would Haruka have likely told him. The Southern Ward had never been as proactive as the other Wards. Its main contact with the people was through death. "People do not give up their beliefs lightly." Like his tenants. He knew Yasu would be holding a festival at estate shrine to usher in the New Year.

"The taint connected to traditionalism was a construct of the court." He refrained from mentioning where it started. It had been taken up so quickly because of the benefits the standpoint provided more than anything else. He hesitated. "If people were encouraged to stand forth by the example of someone, they might." He was feeling a bit uneasy just saying it. The old ways had been in decline for so long that it felt like sedition to be saying such things. Almost revolutionary-

But Doumeki didn't look perturbed. Only thoughtful. And that worried him even more.

"It's late." Doumeki suddenly rose from his seat, reaching for his jacket where it hung on the back of his chair. "I'll come tomorrow night."

Kimihiro stared at him. Feeling like the situation had suddenly slid sideways, leaving him off-balance. "Tomorrow night?"

"For dinner." Doumeki sounded like he was stating the obvious as he pulled on his jacket. "If we can't go out I'll come to you."

He should have seen that coming. Still if Doumeki was at the mansion he could keep things in hand. Who knew what would happen when they were in public. Kimihiro tucked his chair in under the table. Not that he wanted to make it a habit. Doumeki already visited often enough. Too much and people would notice. In fact tomorrow wouldn't be the best-

But Doumeki wasn't waiting for a reply. He had simply taken his agreement for granted. Kimihiro glared at him as he walked towards the door but Doumeki pretended not to see it. He simply opened the door and held it open to let Kimihiro pass through. Kimihiro stared at him, trying to see if Doumeki was making fun of him, but the Keeper just stared at him. Scowling, Kimihiro walked out into the hall.

But not without a rebuking stare. This was his mansion, not Doumeki's.

Hikideshi was waiting for them in the foyer, holding Doumeki's coat. He helped the Keeper fit his arms into the sleeves and settle the garment on his shoulders. Doumeki accepted the aid with a nod of thanks. He stared at Kimihiro for a moment, an unreadable expression in his eyes. "I'll see you tomorrow. Don't catch a cold."

Catch a cold? Why would- Kimihiro glared after him as Hikideshi let Doumeki out of the mansion. He doubted he'd ever fully understand Doumeki. He didn't seem to possess the same thought processes as everyone else. Kimihiro scowled. "What sort of idiot insists on courting someone who doesn't want them?" He said it under his breath but the sharp glance Hikideshi gave him said he had heard.

The butler glanced at the door he had just closed then back to Kimihiro. "It could be a good opportunity." The words were slow, Hikideshi's voice thoughtful.

Kimihiro turned to fix Hikideshi with a stare of disbelief. "In what way?"

Hikideshi eyes were solemn as he met Kimihiro's distress. "To discover what you want."

He couldn't ever imagine wanting this. But Hikideshi was reaching into his jacket and retrieving something. A thin, paper-wrapped package tied with red string. He held it out to Kimihiro. "This came from Lady Yuuko."

Kimihiro accepted it with a wary look. "Today?" He hadn't sensed the activation of the central ward for a transportation and there hadn't been any deliveries of which he had been aware.

"I received it with instructions to give it to you tonight." Hikideshi's expression was bland. Kimihiro knew it well enough to know that Hikideshi wasn't going to divulge any more details. Which made him slightly suspicious.

Kimihiro stared down at the rectangular package in his hand. A present from Yuuko. That was all he needed.

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro set Yuuko's gift on his dressing table. He wasn't certain what it was but he had some idea. With the recent trend of conversations he had been having with her, he doubted that it was a simple New Years gift. It was probably something a lot worse. He wouldn't be surprised if 'relationship advice' was involved somehow.

He didn't think he could handle anything like that tonight. Not after the declaration Doumeki had made so calmly over dinner. He rubbed the side of his face, trying to ease the headache that was starting. Only Doumeki would dare to say something like that with no warning and no preamble. One usually asked for permission to court someone, not make it a statement and then refuse to acknowledge any opposition. If that was Doumeki's idea of a proposal, Kimihiro doubted his attempts at courtship would be any better.

Damage control. Kimihiro could see himself doing a lot of it in the coming days. All while fending Doumeki off and trying to strengthen the protections of the city, tracking down the goryo that roamed within it.

He absently pulled back the curtain and peered out the window. There was a thin layer of snow on the sill, small clumps adorning the heads of the stone dragons gripping onto the side of the building. The white blanket that coated the ground was undisturbed except for the lines where Doumeki's carriage had cut through the snow.

But he knew that the carriage wasn't the only thing that passed over the estate. What had gotten in when the boundary was breeched still wandered restlessly around the mansion, probing for weaknesses. Spirits didn't leave physical traces but he knew they were there. He could see the black shadows flitting over white. They were avoiding the mansion at the moment, scattered by a spirit stronger than them.

All thoughts of Doumeki's idiocy fled from his mind. The yuki onna. She hadn't appeared on the estate for years. Not since the year Haruka had died.

At the palace.

Kimihiro's hand tightened around the curtain. He had always known that Haruka hadn't died at the Southern Ward. The Ward had been secure and Haruka had been busy dealing with the points in the city that weren't. In those last two months, he had been shouldering the entire quarter by himself.

His nails cut through the fabric in his grasp and dug into his palm. Haruka had been worn down by the situation within the capital, stretched thin as he tried to counter the incidents that were suddenly blossoming outside the city walls. He had always assumed that Haruka had encountered something that he'd been unable to counter except through death, channelling his power into the Southern Ward. It was the point that had always borne the brunt of Their incursions in the past, the anchor that held the line to the south. It made sense that Haruka would use his life to secure the Ward that he would pass onto his grandson.

But Haruka had gone to the palace. The central point of the city. If he had died there, it meant he had found something. Haruka hadn't been welcome at the palace and had been barred from entering the royal precinct outside political functions. The question now was one Kimihiro had never considered before. Had Haruka's death been at human hands or something else?

It changed everything.

And nothing at all. The root cause of his death was still the same.

Kimihiro let the curtain fall and pulled his thick robe tighter around him. He suddenly felt cold.

~x~X~x~

1) In Japanese folklore the yuki onna, literally 'snow woman', is a form of New Years deity. Usually in the form of a woman dressed in white on snowy nights, she is blamed for mysterious events. Often she appears with a baby in her arms - leading to her association with children - and sometimes with only one eye and one leg. I've taken her in the first function and blended her with the 'white woman' often seen in Europe.

2) Literally 'god shelf'. The small Shinto altars kept in households for worship.

~x~X~x~

Poor Kimihiro. He got closer to an implosion rather than an explosion XD Still *gleeful* there are lots of opportunities to come :3 Doumeki's idea of courting is...original XD

And that's not the only thing you'll have to look forward to. You're going to see a lot more of the capital in the future. More politics, more threats, more allies, more answers :D The next instalment will be Royal Summons.

~x~X~x~


	80. Unsolicited Aid

Anonymous Readers Replies:

**Mesonoxian:**

You don't have to worry about that - I won't stop until I'm finished :) That's great! :D I'll have lots more words for you ;D

**Flonnie B.:**

XD *nervously eyes the mountain* A hawk, eh? XD I can feel your love through your words :) Of course not XD of course I'm going to reply to you. Just really late . LOL. Oh, don't worry about yr 11 *evil smile* There's yr 12 to worry about. And then university ('college' for you?). Seriously, it's not that bad. You'll look back and laugh at how stressed out you were. Take your time with your writing - you must be very busy. Ahahaha. You're wonderful, you know that? :D

LOL! I thought you might like that :D Doumeki likes to get to the point and 'I want you' certainly does that XD Screaming? XD *big grin* I can imagine that. (maths - ugh, I slept through most of it in yrs 11 and 12) Thanks! I try to write every scene as best as I can (which is why it takes so long sometimes XD). Ah, the white lady. You're right to be worried. If anything I'd written about showed up outside my window, I'd run screaming, too. Right to the kitchen for some salt and a knife XD (Except Mokona. I love Mokona too! Actually I might start screaming if that little ferret face pressed up against my window. After all I've heard about ferrets...*shiver*) A change is definitely coming! I have lots for you to read about. A math's exam? Then you must go! I hope that you went alright. I don't mind at all. Fake names a necessity on the net. There's definitely no hard feelings - I'm actually glad to see that you're thinking about personal safety. I think 'Flonnie' is a very nice nickname :) LOL I'll see you later, then :)

**Valine:**

My LJ is my first port of call - it's easier for me to manage, I find. Everything's out in the open now XD Poor Kimihiro, ignorance, really is bliss XD Thanks! :D Then the next week of so it going to be happy week :D I'm glad you're enjoying it.

**Kingston:**

I'm glad you enjoyed it. Not as long XD LOL. I hope you'll enjoy them.

You can find the character list here (http:// flakedice. livejournal. com/ 57312. html). Some are, some aren't. If they don't regularly appear, then it's more likely you don't need to worry about them. I'll jog your memory on those who are important. Thanks XD

**lianfluffy:**

Hello :D It's lovely to hear from you. I'm really happy to hear that you're enjoying my story :D Thank you! I try to make it as natural as I can. If you have any problems with anything, feel free to ask me :) You're welcome. I'm sorry it's been such a long wait. But I think you'll enjoy this :D

**rainystar:**

It certainly will be XD I hope you'll enjoy it :D

**Kory:**

ch. 11) I'm glad to hear that - because he's staying! :D

ch. 15) That's okay then XD Thanks! :D

ch. 16) It's just too hard to resist letting him in for the fun XD LOL Exactly.

ch. 18) Mine do XD Which makes it all the better - I like feisty storylines XD

ch. 41) I absolutely love him :D I love them all but Haruka has a special place in my heart.

ch. 79) They're so much fun! XD It couldn't happen any other way, really XD *evil laughter* Why don't you read and see? Me? Mean? Ahaha, of course XD Admit it, you like it XD You're welcome. And have fun :D

**Alice:**

I can see that XD Ahahaha. Close. As you shall see :3 Doumeki's wonderful, isn't he? I love his bluntness and I'm glad you found it so entertaining XD Stubborn is a good way to describe it :) That's wonderful! I'm so happy that you're enjoying it so much :D *cheeky* I suppose I'm just naturally loveable.

~x~X~x~

AN: Since it's been so long, I've decided to give you these two pieces. They were written for my LJ (so some of you might have read them before) but I decided they might as well go up here as well. Royal Summons will be up in a few days (even I baulk at posting more than ten chapters at a time XD) but in the meantime, enjoy this sweet interlude. Yuuko's present (and its horrible repercussions XD) are revealed. Enjoy! :D

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**UNSOLICITED AID**

As he did every year, Kimihiro had sent a New Years gift to Yuuko. This year it had been a beautiful silk shawl embroidered with butterflies of different colours of silk thread that glinted and changed shades according to the light.

Yuuko had sent a gift in return but Kimihiro was doing his best to ignore it.

His eyes slid to the slim package sitting harmlessly on the desk. It was a book, that much he was sure of. And with Yuuko as the sender, he had a rather good idea of what sort of book it was.

Kimihiro turned back the book he was reading. It was one of the oldest volumes found in the library, a treatise on the plan of the capital. He had read it several times before but was now looking more closely at the chapters on Hebishima. The man-made island had been selected as the site of the palace for numerous reasons, the local guardian spirit not least among them.

He frowned at the small woodblock print that accompanied the text. It should have been the most secure place in the entire city. But it was where Haruka had gone without telling any of them.

Kimihiro pushed the book aside. He got up and walked past the display cabinets and their dangerous exhibits as he headed towards the shelves. He scanned the leather-bound spines, searching for the title he was after. It took a few moments but he located it and returned back to the desk near the window, new volume tucked under his arm. He glanced out at the drive below, frowning as he saw the spirits which had gathered on the drive. After the onna yuki had appeared on New Years Eve, he had been keeping a careful eye on the grounds.

Kimihiro's frown deepened as he registered the sight below. There were more spirits than there had been the last time he checked, dark blots on the whitened landscape. They were staring up at the widow, dozens of dark eyes focused on him even though he was out of reach behind the wards. Usually there were fewer of them in daylight. They were growing bolder.

He turned away from the window and he pulled out his chair. His eyes fell on the package as he sat back down. He was going to have to write a thank you letter. And Yuuko would know if he hadn't opened her present-

After a suspicious glare, Kimihiro reached out and picked up the package, pulling loose the strings that tied it before he could change his mind. As soon as the string had loosened, the wrapping unfurled like the petals of some malevolent flower.

It _was_ a book. But the cover was blank, giving no clue to its contents.

Kimihiro's eyes narrowed. It was a ploy. A very obvious ploy to get him to open it and look at the contents.

But he wasn't going to fall for it. He had an idea of what Yuuko had sent him and he wasn't amused. When would she give up?

Kimihiro crumpled the paper wrapping and tossed the blank-covered book on to the desk. And then he ignored it, opening the heavy volume he had retrieved from the shelves. It focused on the royal complex and contained a detailed plan of the palace, the two gardens and the shrine at its centre. There had to be something that would provide a clue to what had happened at the palace. What could have caught Haruka's attention-

Kimihiro opened the cover and flipped through the introduction until he reached the main text. The first few pages contained diagrams of the royal complex as they had been in the decades after the founding of the capital. There had been additions during the following centuries but the original structures remained, nested inside the outer wings. He absently traced a finger over the lines of the buildings. It was exactly the same as the other half a dozen diagrams that he had checked.

His eyes strayed back to the thin book Yuuko had sent him. It just sat there, the plain bound cover looking harmless. Like any of the volumes that filled the library. If it wasn't for the wary suspicion he felt when he saw it, it might have been-

He clearly wasn't going to be able to concentrate until he found out.

Kimihiro scowled and reached over to pick it up. He stared down at the blank cover. It was unassuming. He cautiously lifted the cover only to be confronted with a hand-written message that flowed over the flyleaf.

_Kimihiro,_

_May you find everything you seek._

_Yuuko._

Kimihiro frowned. It was a surprisingly solemn message. Perhaps he had been wrong, after all. Yuuko might not have any ulterior motive in mind. He turned the pages. Lines of text suddenly gave way to pictures, line drawings that interspersed the text.

Kimihiro scowled. He had been right. Yuuko had shown him similar things before. They had been innocuous enough at first but eventually they had gotten worse and worse. And he had a sinking what this one was. But worst of all, unless he looked through it he wouldn't know for sure which it was. Kimihiro wouldn't put it past Yuuko to give him something harmless only so she could bring his complaints up short when she pointed it out. Then declare what a dirty mind he had for coming up with the idea-

He flipped through the pages. It wasn't what he expected: various characters arriving at some celebrations, what looked like a tense altercation. It wasn't until he was about a third of the way through that he realized why one of the characters had caught his attention. He opened the next page and peered at it.

It _did_ look like Doumeki. The man had the same small eyes, the same habitually blank face. Kimihiro frowned in perplexity. He flipped over the page. And then another. Soon the man appeared again. The exact stance, the same slight tilt of the head. Kimihiro's frown deepened. He couldn't shake the feeling that it was more than coincidence.

Kimihiro continued to flip through the pages. Not intent on the plot as much as finding the man once more. Strangely familiar streets and buildings flicked past. Familiar yet strange surroundings. And then-

The man appeared again. This time naked and in the embrace of another man-

Kimihiro slammed the book shut, right eye twitching. He knew it. It _was_ one of Yuuko's 'helpful' gifts after all. Apparently she had taken steps beyond hinting. But to send him such a thing- He pushed it aside and resolutely turned back to the volume he had been reading.

He had gotten through several pages before his thoughts returned to the Yuuko's present again. His initial anger fading, he could view it from a slightly better perspective. It hadn't quite been pornography. There had been tactfully positioned sheets. Yuuko could have given him something worse. He grimaced, recalling one particular book he had seen. Much worse.

He glanced at the book again, fingers holding his place in the volume he was reading. Yuuko would be highly amused if she found out he had gotten skittish at simply the sight of some erotic illustration. And she would know. And take great delight in pointing out that it meant a great deal in his relationship with Doumeki. Kimihiro knew what she would say. That he hadn't had any problems seeing such things in the past and why did it bother him now when-

Kimihiro slid a scrap of paper onto the page he had been reading and closed the thick volume. Scowling, he reached for the book again, flipping through once more. That wasn't true. He could look at it. In fact, he'd prove it.

He reached the page he had slammed the book shut on. The second time around it didn't seem so shocking. It was pretty tame compared to some things that were passed around society in back rooms or purchased from the storerooms of discrete booksellers.

But it still looked like Doumeki. The same small eyes in a familiar broad face, set in an intent expression. Kimihiro stared at the man's face, feeling slightly disturbed. He had seen an expression like that on Doumeki's face before. Except here it was more open, naked. His eyes involuntarily moved from the man's face at the thought. From the short sweaty hair that clung to his temples and the back of his neck, to the long gently tapering line of his back that disappeared under the rumpled sheets-

Kimihiro froze, eyes wide. Suddenly aware that he was reacting to the image. In ways he didn't want to associate with Doumeki, had never wanted to- But his body didn't lie. And it was giving him a clear signal now.

Kimihiro slammed the book shut, hoping that it was just that. Not that that wasn't bad enough- But the image of Doumeki, half clothed and wearing that expression was all too easy to imagine. It was becoming painfully apparent _that_ was the cause of his sudden surge of the lust that was accepted so readily by his body and rejected by his mind.

_Lovers._

He opened the book again in desperation. To prove that it wasn't true, to- He stared down at the image in horror. The man didn't look like Doumeki at all. Doumeki had broader shoulders and was wiry rather than heavily muscled- And it was the thought of what Doumeki would look like in the same situation that had his fingers clench hard on the book as his problem suddenly become a lot worse.

There had been beautiful women before. Even Yuuko once or twice. But never a man. And never _Doumeki_-

There was a soft knock at the door. "My lord?" There was caution in Hikideshi's voice and uncharacteristic hesitation.

Kimihiro's eyes darted frantically to the desk and back to the book that sat open, displaying the two naked men twined together. He slammed it shut and, in an inspired moment, shoved it under a pile of books sitting on the desk. A thought of how unnatural he'd look tucked up under the desk flashed through his mind. Kimihiro hastily thrust his chair back from the desk and pulled the large tome he had been reading onto his lap. Trying to ignore the discomfort-

"Come in." It was strange to say it. Hikideshi never had to ask. He usually knew when he was needed or not.

The door opened with a faint whisper of power and Hikideshi entered the room, appearing between the shelves. He acted as though nothing was wrong, carrying in the tray of tea. He walked across the room soundlessly and set the tray down on a clear space on the desk. "Dinner will be ready in an hour." He paused by the desk. "Is there anything else you require, my lord?"

Kimihiro was acutely conscious of the book on his lap. And the fact that Hikideshi hadn't even glanced at it. "No." His voice was slightly strained in his ears. "That will be all, thank you." His words sounded unnaturally stilted in his ears. Kimihiro was trying not to will Hikideshi out of the room - he might sense that - but it was difficult. He wanted Hikideshi anywhere but here at the moment.

"My lord." Hikideshi bowed slightly. His eyes fell on the pile of books, the thin volume hidden amongst them, and paused for a moment before moving on. But he didn't say anything more. He silently retreated across the room, disappearing between the shelves, the door closing quietly behind him as he left.

Kimihiro closed his eyes for a moment in sheer relief. He lifted the book from his lap and set it back on the table. The situation had been enough of a dampener that his body had lost the excitement that had animated it. It was too embarrassing to retain any amorous thoughts with Hikideshi in the room, even though the butler hadn't said anything.

Hikideshi had always been good in that regard, respecting his privacy and pretending not to see certain things that would otherwise have been embarrassing. But despite that, Kimihiro had never felt comfortable with it.

His gaze fell on the thin volume tucked into the pile of thicker ones. The spotless binding stood out among the older worn leather spines. In hindsight it wasn't the best hiding place.

_May you find everything you seek._

Kimihiro pressed the heel of his hand hard into the socket of his right eye, trying to drive out the ache that was starting to form. The immediate panic was over but he was left with a greater problem. He now had a better idea of how he felt about Doumeki. And it had been demonstrated in such a way that he couldn't deny it.

What had happened to him? It was all Doumeki's fault for even suggesting it. It was natural to wonder at what could happen even if you didn't _want_ it to. But to actually get aroused at the thought- Kimihiro pressed his hand harder into his eye, trying to eliminate the memory. It didn't help.

He thought Doumeki was attractive. Sexually.

He'd obviously been stuck in the mansion too long.

But maybe…maybe it was a mistake. Maybe, he thought with a sudden suspicion, what Yuuko had sent him was more that a book. Kimihiro regarded it suspiciously from one eye. But even with his sight, it was only a book. He felt slightly ashamed for thinking it. Yuuko might hint and prod at him but she would never force anything on him. And that left-

He didn't want to contemplate what that left.

But it was easy enough to test. Kimihiro squirmed mentally at the idea but he was desperate to disprove that what had happened was a result of his unresolved feelings for Doumeki. He had to know. Maybe it had simply been a crazy lapse but he had to be sure.

He thought of Doumeki. Naked and in his bed-

Kimihiro was aghast to find his heart was beating faster at the thought. It wasn't as strong a reaction when he had viewed the book but he felt a definite stir of interest.

His headache increased as the implications set in. It changed everything. Along with everything else he had to contend with, he now had to battle with himself. With urges that hadn't even been a consideration before but now were very real.

He slid his hand up, fingers clutching hard into his hair. Even worse, with Doumeki embarking on his idea of courting, he was going to be in Doumeki close company for a long time to come. His fingers clenched, pulling painfully on his hair.

Kimihiro sent a daggered look at the poorly hidden book that was responsible for his current dilemma. He was going to have to think of a way to thank Yuuko properly.

~x~X~x~

Hahaha. And won't that be fun. *amused* Yuuko knows Kimihiro so well XD

~x~X~x~


	81. Stubborn Perch

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**STUBBORN PERCH**

He'd been dreading seeing Doumeki again. Half-afraid that seeing Doumeki in the flesh after the unsettling revelation he'd had would have him reacting in ways that Kimihiro really didn't want to think about. But the familiar rush of almost exasperated irritation reassured him. He hadn't lost his mind entirely.

But Doumeki might have.

"What's that?" He stared at the object Doumeki held in his arms with wary suspicion.

Doumeki glanced down at the vessel, as if checking to see if Kimihiro was referring to what he thought he was. "A vase."

"I know it's a vase!" He caught his voice rising and tried to suppress his irritation. This wasn't getting them anywhere. Doumeki didn't think like other people and sometimes had to be led down the path of logic that was followed by everyone else. Kimihiro took a breath, trying to regain his former calm. "Why did you bring it here?" He was pleased his voice was level. Even with the prospect of what Doumeki might say-

"I brought it for you." Doumeki took a step forward and settled the vase in Kimihiro's hands.

Kimihiro found himself clutching the fragile object to his chest. He could all-too-easily imagine the thousands of broken pieces that would scatter across the marble floor. It was surprisingly heavy. An ornamental vase that would have suited an elegant hall as easily as a private room, it was a descent size but its deceptively fragile appearance made it look much lighter than it was.

It was unwrapped, of course. Only Doumeki would give a gift in such an unadorned manner. Kimihiro stared at the decorations on the side. The pale white porcelain was decorated with a delicate painting of cherry branches, a brush warbler perched on a branch amid the pale blossoms. It was a common enough subject but Kimihiro suspected that Doumeki was implying more than good luck. Kimihiro scowled. He had no intention of being embraced by the Yamoto line.

"Traditionally, it's flowers." Unless there was a current trend to give vases during courting. It was plausible - stranger fads had run through the social circuit - but Kimihiro had the sinking feeling that this was simply because he was being courted by Doumeki.

Doumeki had paused in the act of handing his coat to Hikideshi, who was watching proceedings with a suspiciously straight face. "Do you want some?" From the sound of it, Doumeki was ready to go out and pick some.

"No!" Kimihiro said hastily. He realised how badly it had sounded and added. "It's fine without." He felt irritated when he realized how that sounded. Why was he so concerned about Doumeki's feelings when Doumeki was the one who was forcing his feelings on _him_? Especially when no matter how much Kimihiro protested, Doumeki simply ignored him.

Doumeki didn't look entirely convinced by that. He had a thoughtful expression that made Kimihiro uneasy, not least because of Doumeki's previous enthusiasm. With his refusal of flowers, no doubt Doumeki was thinking of getting something else. He seemed to be stuck on gifts at the moment.

He stared at Doumeki for a moment, his unease unabated. It was pines today. Tiny glittering gold branches in the stylized clouds of green. A matching vest, small pines on mountains sketched in shades of metallic blue and grey, peeked out from under the jacket. It looked like Doumeki had put some effort into his attire. And Kimihiro had to grudgingly admit that he didn't look too bad.

Kimihiro averted his eyes. Not that he wanted to admire the effect of Doumeki's clothes. Or how Doumeki looked in them-

Hikideshi had taken Doumeki's coat and now came to take the vase Kimihiro was holding. "There is an adequate stand in storage." The butler cradled the delicate vase in his fingers, eyes following the curve of the bird's wings with a warm gaze of admiration. "It would look well on the table in your bedroom."

Kimihiro nodded, willing to let Hikideshi decide where to put it. And as soon as he had Kimihiro realized that Doumeki had given him a courting gift and he hadn't even tried to give it back. And it was too late now.

Hikideshi gave a small bow. "Tea will be ready shortly." He started off into the west wing carefully carrying the vase in both hands.

Kimihiro had half-expected Doumeki to have started for the study but Doumeki simply stood there, waiting for him. Staring at him. But it wasn't an impatient stare. It was warm, expectant. As if Doumeki was content to stand there waiting for him all day.

"You might as well stay for afternoon tea." Kimihiro turned and headed towards the study. He was aware of Doumeki following, closely behind.

And the way the small pine trees spread across Doumeki's chest had somehow become imprinted in his mind. This was going to be more difficult than he had thought.

~x~X~x~

Understatement! XD

~x~X~x~


	82. Royal Summons I

ANONYMOUS REPLIES

**O.O:** I hope the wait was worth it ;D Here you go. Not soon exactly but not too long XD

**kingston:** He'll get used to it :3 :D You're most welcome :D Ahahaha. Then it's a good thing I like to write a lot. Have some meat XD Ahaha. Wouldn't Kimihiro's attempts to explain be entertaining? XD

**HAIRI:** :D It was a long break - but have no fear. I won't stop until it's finished. I'm really happy to hear that :) It would be wonderful if I could but I doubt I could manage a third time. In another universe, however - seek and you shall find ;D I will do. I hope you enjoy this one.

**Sahara:** It's an interesting sensation, isn't it? But it's kind of fun to think in a different way :)

**andchipzz:** It's good to see it gets the blood flowing :D Thanks! :D I like to twist things a little to see how it might be. Practise, reading and more reading. You'll get there ;D LOL. A natural reaction. That's wonderful :D I'm glad you're persisting. I'll try to make it worth your while ;D I have. But not seriously until recently. Whether it's interesting or not, only time will tell ;D

**Meche:** :D I salute your perseverance! I have indeed thought about it. I'm afraid that would entail more than changing character names. I'd have to yank out all the CLAMP characters and replace them with new ones. And with the characters I have in mind that makes it an entirely new story. Thank you! :D I'll be sure to tell you when my first book is in print.

* * *

~x~X~x~

AN: A few days, a few weeks. It looks like I've developed some time problems. How very sad XD Oh well, the wait is sometimes as much fun as the reward, right? :3 Ah, the gritty reality of court...and Doumeki's mother.

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**ROYAL SUMMONS**

**I**

The royal court was being held. The enormous space of the audience chamber was filled to capacity as the full court assembled. Brightly coloured dresses wove a jumbled tapestry that threaded through the white marble pillars supporting the high ceiling. Fans snapped open to hide sly smiles and eyes, painted in almost as many shades as the dresses worn in the hall, peered in a mock appearance of demure modesty. But lips moved behind bright fans and thorny thoughts paraded behind the windows of their eyes. The hum that filled the chamber hid rumours, gossip and slander that flowed freely from painted lips.

The lords were a slightly more sombre spectacle at first sight, spread through the colours of the ladies like dull moths flitting among flowers. But then bright colours flashed in the light from the high windows as embroidery revealed dark suits to be just as ornate, if not more, than the ladies' gowns. Fake smiles and laughter belied calculating eyes. Reputations and fortunes were made and ruined in a matter of minutes as powerful interests allied and grew strong or collided and dispersed. It was a polite war that ultimately had few victors.

And at the centre of it all was the queen.

Light flooded in from the freestanding dome and poured down on the elevated platform that held the throne. The gold-chased ivory shone in the blinding light, making the solid seat seem a thing of glass. It shone, unrelenting, a constant reminder of the power of the queen who had not yet arrived. The gathered nobles might have power in their own right but ultimately all waited on her pleasure.

Doumeki stood in the shadows of a pillar to one side of the chamber. He preferred to stand apart from the glittering throng. Partly because he had no interest in the roil of petty interests, the jostling for status and constant fawning he was subjected to when he joined the courtly flow. The prince had avoided attending such gatherings as often as he could, even as a child when he had been forced into the royal spotlight. He had much preferred to spend his time at the Southern Ward on a stone bench beneath an ancient weeping cherry.

But after that had been taken away from him Doumeki had learnt to use the social strivings and petty conflicts to his advantage. He had begun to gather resources and bolster his own power. A drive that had finally won him the freedom he desired, his return to the Southern Ward.

Only the pursuit of something would voluntarily draw him back.

But today Doumeki had no reason to subject himself to the social war. What acquaintances he had were best met in different surroundings. And none of the painted eyes that shot him alluring glances were enough to tempt him. He had learned that the sort of company he desired lay elsewhere.

The only reason he was here was because of the missive that was tucked folded in one of his pockets. While he had power in his own right as Keeper and prince, he couldn't very well refuse a direct summons from the queen herself.

"Your Highness!" Doumeki turned to see one of the lords approaching him, trotting slowly along the pillared corridor. He was a rather stout man whose glittering jacket barely covered his stomach, gaping open to reveal his elaborately embroidered vest. His tailor had erred on the side of ornament and threatened to tumble the garments into gaudiness. Thick lines of metallic green depicting strands of bamboo flashed as the lord made a deep, almost servile, bow. "It's been a long time since we've seen you at court, Your Highness." His dark eyes, unfortunately small in his round face, were lit with good cheer. "Several months at least."

"At least." Doumeki was aware of the eyes that were on them. The conversations of those nearby had stopped as ears strained to hear their words. While none of the throng had been willing to make the first move to venture close and risk his displeasure, they were fully prepared to take advantage of Lord Tanizaki's folly.

"It's good to see you here, Your Highness." Lord Tanizaki plucked a handkerchief from his sleeve and patted at his face. The room was warm but as the lord's layers of clothing combined with his wide girth and recent exertion, Lord Tanizaki apparently found it a bit too much. "We've missed your presence."

Doumeki glanced at the small group of nobles that had started to drift closer, ostensibly to find some relief from the crush in the hall but more likely to get within hearing distance. "I'm sure."

Lord Tanizaki smiled brightly. "Some people have expressed the opinion that they were looking forward to seeing Lord Watanuki again." He looked at his handkerchief before applying it to his forehead. "It's curious that he's been absent for so long."

Doumeki eyed him narrowly for a moment. "Not all of us enjoy your good health, Lord Tanizaki."

The lord blinked then let out a loud laugh. It had heads turning throughout the hall, cutting conversations short. Lord Tanizaki seemed to be oblivious to the fact that they were now the centre of attention for most of the gathered nobles. "Right you are, Your Highness! I take after my mother, bless her soul. I've still got several good decades left in me." He smiled at Doumeki, "I pray it's the same for Her Highness and you, Your Highness."

His mother certainly wasn't showing any signs of her age. If anything, she had a tighter grip on the court now than she ever had.

Lord Tanizaki patted his forehead again. "Do you think that Lord Watanuki will be joining us anytime soon?" He was sweating, his former humour receding. The older man looked slightly nervous. "From what I've heard he isn't in the best of health."

The concern over Kimihiro was unusual – Doumeki certainly hadn't heard any enquiries about his health before. But no doubt it was one of the main concerns in court at the moment. Doumeki considered his reply carefully. "The rumours about Lord Watanuki's health are greatly exaggerated." He met Lord Tanizaki's eyes with a warning stare. "Like most of the rumours attached to his name."

Lord Tanizaki's small eyes sharpened. "Rumours naturally ferment in one's absence." He gave a small conciliatory smile. "But Your Highness' recent support has shown the error in that." He nodded. "If Lord Watanuki returned to court he might find some new friends. And some old ones."

Doumeki stared into the old man's face for a moment, digesting that. So some members of the court were eager to see Kimihiro again. He doubted it was for entirely benign reasons.

Lord Tanizaki crumpled the handkerchief in his hand, darting a glance to the nobles who were hanging back observing them. "I've imposed on you too long, Your Highness." He bowed deeply. "I thank you for your time."

Doumeki watched the large man hurrying back through the line of pillars and across the invisible line that had been drawn between them. He trotted back to the nobles filling the hall. Almost immediately he was welcomed back by an eager audience. As the only man to brave Doumeki's isolation, those who had held back were eager to relieve him of whatever morsels he had gathered.

Lord Tanizaki was an important fixture in society. He always had information on the latest scandal and was ready to pass on the latest anecdote. His age and entertainment value allowed the court to overlook his otherwise unwelcome habits of over-familiarity and drinking to excess. The old lord was seen as harmless but amusing.

But Doumeki knew that Lord Tanizaki had been an officer in the royal legion during his youth. Even now, there was muscle under his fat and intelligence behind his small eyes. Katsurou was like the tiger he wore on his jacket – most people saw the glittering bamboo and never realized they had brushed close to a predator with teeth and claws. Which was why he was one of Doumeki's valuable agents in court.

The sound of metal on marble suddenly rang out, cutting through the whispers and laughter that had started up in hall again. It rippled through the hall, casting a growing silence in its wake.

The chamberlain, dressed in an elaborate outfit of silver and black that complimented his greying hair, stood before the large double doors set to one side of the dais, connected by the luxurious red carpet that joined the two. "Her Majesty." The chamberlain's deep voice rolled out into the expectant silence. "Queen Akio Bernice Yamoto." No other titles were announced but they weren't really necessary.

The dark doors swung open silently to reveal a glittering slender figure. The queen was walking through them even as they opened. Back ramrod straight, yet seeming to glide gracefully into the chamber, the queen made her way to the dais. The gown that draped her matched the throne; glittering with rows of pearls and diamonds it appeared a sheath of glass. Or ice. The pale brocade matched the same uncannily pale shade of her eyes as they glanced commandingly over her subjects.

They met her son's briefly but continued on without acknowledgement.

Doumeki could feel his face growing impassive, what little emotion he allowed himself to show leeching away. Her Majesty was angry and there was no doubt that some of that anger was directed at him.

~x~X~x~

For the next hour Doumeki stood silently by his pillar, watching as the court proceedings took place. It had become clear that his mother would not deal with him until after her business was concluded for the day. It didn't surprise him. It was a rebuke, a show of power and precedence that he had been subjected to his entire life and was not likely to stop any time soon.

Doumeki chose to use the time wisely. Not to reflect on his short comings as his mother no doubt desired, but to gather information.

Several issues were at stake.

The first was the repairs of the four main avenues which divided the capital into the four quarters maintained by the cardinal Wards. On the surface, it seemed a simple matter - the thoroughfares saw use by much of the capital's traffic and were in need of repair. Several months ago Doumeki would have noted it and directed his attention to other more pressing matters.

But that was before the events of the past few months. He now knew how integral the main roads were to the interlocking wards that were woven into the very infrastructure of the city. They had been laid out during the foundation of the city and had been maintained to the same standards ever since. Even a slight divergence, which was all too possible without the proper supervision by Keepers and priests that was suggested now, might put the Wards themselves in jeopardy.

The second issue was the conveyance of land ownership. Traditionally property had been divided according to ward lines and shrine locales. But such divisions were now regarded as impediments to progress. Under the new edict, the crown proposed that lands could be divided and sold without regard of the ward lines that crossed them. Shrines would be left out of negotiations by simply being ignored.

The last issue was the crown's encouragement to embrace the new thinking that had flooded the court during the last century. Despite the Yamoto line's perseverance, the old ways had a firm hold on much of the commons and some of the older lords. A royal edict to reward those who would discard the old ways in favour of the new was now suggested. It wasn't expressed in as many words but Doumeki could see what the 'support of modernization' would mean. It was perhaps the most dangerous of the three, for its wording could be taken as free reign for those landowners who wished to abolish any traces of the old religion.

All three edicts proposals were established without much comment from the court.

Doumeki refrained from letting a frown reach his face. He had known that all three edicts were in the works and had been convinced that the effects would be minimal. But after hearing the precise wording of each of them for himself he could see the damage they might cause when enacted together.

It seemed that his mother had not given up on her grudge.

The court proceedings came to a close with the instatement of several lords into the fold of the Queen's Order. It was basically another rung of the social ladder designed to acknowledge those who had achieved a certain level of monetary worth. Doumeki noted the names and faces but otherwise didn't pay much attention. The petty rituals of court didn't concern him.

Last duty dealt with, the queen rose from her thrown and descended from the dais. Her gown shimmered in the light pouring down on the dais, dazzling the eyes of onlookers. Even so, Doumeki saw the piercing stare shot in his direction for the summons it was.

He joined his mother as she walked the red carpet, trailing behind her as she stepped through the double doors. The sudden buzz of excited murmurs at his action was cut off as the doors shut silently behind them.

No doubt his public embarrassment would be all over the city before nightfall.

The queen continued down the corridor without pausing for her son. Doumeki followed silently, his long strides easily keeping pace with the queen's quick staccato steps.

They finally entered an antechamber adjacent to the royal chambers. Doumeki was well familiar with them having lived within their confines for most of his life. The attendants who had escorted then retreated quickly, closing the doors quietly behind them.

As soon as the attendants retreated, the queen spun around to confront her son. Her eyes, glittering as much as her gown, raked over his attire.

Doumeki tried not to stiffen under her regard. Riku had assured that he had exited the Southern Ward as impeccably dressed as ever. The aide had expended extra efforts after hearing of the summons. It was more sombre than his usual attire, plain dark grey with only a modest amount of embroidery. Riku had been careful to choose an outfit that had no potentially challenging symbolism. The designs that looped across the dark fabric were soothingly organic: pines and bamboo suitable for the season, with only a few thin lines of mist to symbolize the Southern Quarter. A reminder of his position but not an overt one.

His mother scrutinized the design carefully, her face expressionless. Finally pale eyes, paler than those of the Woodrow line, met his own in an icy regard.

His father's eyes. Eyes that reminded her every time she looked at him.

Doumeki stared back, face devoid of emotion.

"We were publicly embarrassed by your absence at the royal celebrations." Pale grey eyes flashed. "What could be more important than your royal duty to stand with the crown to usher in a new year of stability." It was not a question but a demand.

Whatever he said was going to be wrong. Doumeki settled for the truth. "A private matter."

Her eyes narrowed. "Do not tell me that you were associating with _that man_." She had dropped the royal we. The last words were practically spat out, as if even mentioning Kimihiro's name would sully her lips.

A faint tremor ran through Doumeki's arm as his left fist clenched. His eyes lowered briefly to hide his anger. Anger wouldn't win him anything and he wasn't about to argue with his mother about his relationship with Kimihiro. The reason he had come today was because he wanted answers.

"You sent me the report." He didn't doubt that. The timing had been calculated. Though what she thought to achieve he didn't know.

His mother was still for a moment, face stark and forbidding. "It was time you knew." She was unapologetic, her words cold and precise. Her face darkened, "Involvement with that cursed line only leads to death."

Doumeki's mouth tightened. "I fail to see your reasoning."

Her eyes narrowed dangerously. "You were always wilful, Shizuka, but never stupid."

It was difficult not to give into his anger. "He didn't know anything about Haruka's death."

His mother stared at him. "You believe him." She sounded disgusted.

"He's never given me reason to doubt him." Doumeki's words were edged with anger. _Unlike you, mother._

Anger sparked anew in her eyes, as if she could read the unspoken words on his face. "You have no idea what he has done, the deaths he has caused." Her voice was low, the words freighted with fury.

Doumeki's knuckles cracked, his hand was so tightly fisted. "Do you have any proof for your accusations?"

Her eyes flashed. "I _know_."

He met her stare squarely. "And I know Kimihiro wouldn't lie to me." He'd never been so sure of anything in his life.

His mother's eyes widened in shock at his use of Kimihiro's name. Her face drew tight with anger. "You chose him over your duty?"

Doumeki didn't flinch in face of her fierce stare. "I don't see one exclusive of the other. I'm no longer crown prince." He was deliberately blunt – there was no other way to say it and have her hear him. "I'm Keeper of the Southern Ward. By standing with Kimihiro Watanuki, I _am_ doing fulfilling duty." It was what Haruka had believed. It was what _he_ believed.

His mother's hand rose like she wanted to slap him. Doumeki didn't make a move to defend himself and she lowered the hand forcibly to her side. "You are _my_ son!" It was practically a hiss. "Your duty is to your Queen and the protection of your people!" She glared at him. "You will break this farce of attachment and attend to your duties." She took his silence for obedience and left him in a furious whirl of glittering skirts that was cut off as the door of her apartments slammed shut.

Doumeki stood still for a few moments, his fisted hand restrained by the palm of his right, fingers curled restraining around the angry flesh.

Finally his hand unclenched and he stalked from the antechamber as if nothing had happened.

~x~X~x~

"My lord?" Riku met him at the door. His dark eyes were concerned even if his face was as composed as always.

"I won't be going out for the rest of the day. Send the carriage back to the stables." Doumeki shrugged off his coat and handed it to the aide, whose worry had only increased at his words. "I'll be in my study."

Riku bowed. "As you wish, my lord." But he sounded worried.

Doumeki nodded and headed for his study.

Moments later he was sitting at his desk staring blankly at a clean piece of parchment. He wasn't quite sure what to write.

But he couldn't simply leave things as they were. While it was an unspoken agreement, he would usually visit the Watanuki mansion every few days. Ostensibly to find out whether there were any urgent supernatural calamities to attend to and, no doubt the priority in the lord's mind, to receive free food. Though the glares Kimihiro shot him suggested he suspected Doumeki was trying to lull him into complacency and spring the next step of his courting on him.

It was true in some respects – Doumeki was eager to make progress – but it was also for his peace of mind. To ensure that Kimihiro hadn't pushed himself into a state of exhaustion or gotten himself into some trouble that he was too prideful to ask for help with. While Kimihiro had resigned himself to suffering Doumeki's presence when he left the mansion, Doumeki was aware he was attending to the problems brought to his door alone. But he _had_ gained Kimihiro's trust to the extent that the other man would confide in him when he asked.

Getting Kimihiro to accept his feelings, however, was a different matter. It was trust of a different sort and harder to earn. But he was making progress. Kimihiro hadn't turned down any of his gifts and he hadn't been thrown out of the mansion yet – Doumeki had no doubt Kimihiro wouldn't let propriety stand in the way if he really felt harassed. It had been less than a week but Kimihiro had started to get used to it – he had taken a stance of refusal but not outright rejection. Doumeki was confident that he could turn that rejection into acceptance if he impressed Kimihiro of his sincerity. And with the rumours that were no doubt flying around now, he had no intention of letting Kimihiro think that he was avoiding him.

He was, but it was for Kimihiro's sake rather than self interest or any influence of society. After the ultimatum his mother had just delivered, it wasn't wise to immediately go out and seek out the cause of her displeasure. He would at least wait until tomorrow.

It would take him at least that long to ensure Kimihiro was protected against the royal wrath. In truth, for someone like Kimihiro there was a limit to the things his mother could do. The lord was essentially a social recluse so banishment from court was not a factor. Neither was the society shunning that was regularly inflicted - Kimihiro was already on the receiving end of that. It was simply discarded as soon at his fellow nobles wanted to use his services.

A withdrawal of royal contracts was also out of the question. Kimihiro was independently wealthy: he currently had no exclusive trade rights or any royal appointments. He had no titles beyond his hereditary claim to the Watanuki line's lands and stripping it from him was taboo unless the queen wanted a political uprising from all the nobles. An unfashionable recluse, even a social pariah Lord Kimihiro may be, but he was still a lord. And as such he was still allowed several privileges, the right to his hereditary title and lands among them. Such things were sacrosanct.

But even so there was still ways that his mother could make her displeasure known. An unofficial ban not the least among them. While most of the nobles visited Kimihiro slyly despite his _persona non grata_ status, that might change if the queen let it be know she did not see him fit to associate with. It was one thing to go see someone who was simply socially unfashionable and surrounded by dark rumours. It was quite another to risk the displeasure of Her Majesty with potential danger to your own interests.

Though Kimihiro didn't earn a living from his services, a decrease in custom would still cost him. At the moment, with most of the issues that he had to deal with, it was possible to do so within the boundaries of his estate. Cursed items tended to be highly portable. However, if the flow through his warded gates slowed, Kimihiro would have no choice but venture beyond his boundaries to deal with them. Even if people with problems refused to come to him, Kimihiro still had to deal with clearing up the consequences when cursed items and dissatisfied spirits appeared.

And there was always the possibility of a fake trial.

Doumeki's fists clenched where they lay on the desk. Such a thing would not be totally out of proportion to the crimes his mother thought Kimihiro had committed. And in some ways it was a threat to which Kimihiro was most vulnerable. He was isolated and made no pretence about his beliefs, openly following the old ways. Both were things that were highly unpopular these days. Only a few would stand with him if he was accused of some crime. Kimihiro's public behaviour did not show in his favour, either. It would be all too possible to depict him as mentally unstable and a threat.

The pen in Doumeki's grasp groaned and he slowly unclenched his hand. As Keeper of the Southern Ward his protection was not insignificant. But it still had its limits. Especially against his mother.

He was going to have to exert some influence before he was satisfied that he had done all that he could. Doumeki had no intention of letting his mother destroy what he had achieved. It had taken months to gain Kimihiro's trust and even longer to get where he was now. His mother had taken Haruka from him but Doumeki wasn't going to let her take Kimihiro away as well. And he was prepared to fight to stop her.

But first he would have to send a message.

Doumeki frowned down at the paper. Finally he simply decided to write down what he wanted to say. Kimihiro thought him as incurably rude, anyway. In this case it was better to be blunt and prevent any misunderstandings.

~x~X~x~

_I won't be coming tonight._

_Have breakfast ready._

Kimihiro stared at the missive with something like a cross between offended anger and reluctant concern. It had been delivered by an unliveried messenger on horseback. But even with the blank envelope and unsigned message, he knew who it was from. No one else would send such a letter.

Kimihiro glared exasperatedly at the letter and refolded it, slipping it into its envelope and tucking it into a pocket.

"My lord?" Hikideshi had remained in the foyer after seeing the messenger away.

"Clear the dining room table. His Highness will not be joining us tonight." It irritated him that he had actually gone to the trouble of having the man's whims catered to by having his favourite dishes prepared.

Hikideshi didn't move. "Will my lord be eating?"

Kimihiro sent him a distracted stare. He was already working through what he could serve for breakfast the next morning. Doumeki ate a ridiculous amount of food and it was only likely that having not eaten for several hours while sleeping would exacerbate the situation. He wasn't sure if there was going to be enough.

The butler met his gaze with an impassive stare. "Shall I prepare a tray?"

Kimihiro nodded, knowing that he was going to get one whether he wanted it or not. It had been a busy day, starting with the farmer seeking crop charms and ending with the hasty arrival that had postponed lunch. Now that he thought of it he hadn't eaten since...

Since morning.

Kimihiro blinked. No wonder it had been more difficult to summon Ryuu to dispose of the taint on the lady's knitting needles. He had been so intent on dealing with the problems at hand that eating hadn't even crossed his mind. It wasn't until now that he even realized that he was hungry.

He wandered out of the foyer, heading for his study. He still had some things to deal with, correspondence with Yuuko about the latest happenings not least among them. It wasn't yet the beginning of the flood but he could sense it looming on the horizon.

With the turning of the year, life had gotten busier. Not only had Doumeki taken to showing up every few days – usually with some strange gift that he thought was suitable for courting (Kimihiro was starting to seriously wonder if Doumeki was following some ill-advised guide or making it up on his own – he seriously hoped it was the latter) – but there was a stream of small things to attend to. He'd had more people coming to his door in the last few days than he had in the previous three weeks. Small things. But a flood of them.

It was usually the small things that were a warning of what was to come. Kimihiro had already begun looking at the vital points of the city for weakness, certain that there were going to be more efforts to weaken the wards. What he had found only confirmed his suspicions. Too many things were happening that shouldn't. The cracks in the city were suddenly beginning to appear.

The problem was that most of them had been purposefully made. It was not just a matter of negligence or ignorance – though that was part of it. Something was actively and methodically pulling out supports from the wards. And he could guess what.

The increase of small incidents was only one sign of this. They represented the increasing strain being put on the major Wards - while they continued to hold, smaller things were starting to slip past their guardianship. It also had the added effect of distracting resources - the pull of small incidents was increasing as the days passed and acted to sap his energy before he could deal with the larger issues. He was beginning to think that was deliberate as well.

If it was, it only confirmed what he had feared. He was making moves and the supernatural world was getting restless in the face of Their awakening.

Kimihiro flinched as he opened his study door. He had been expecting it for years but the prospect was still enough to make his blood run cold.

He closed the door behind him quietly and moved to stand before the fire. For a few moments Kimihiro simply stood, watching the flickering flames and letting the warmth seep into his robe.

It was so comfortable, in fact, that he found himself drifting asleep on his feet. With reluctant determination, Kimihiro left the warmth of the fire and retreated to his desk. He opened the bottom drawer and pulled out a sheet of pale purple paper. He set it on the desk and retrieved the fountain pen he used for important letters.

He set the pen to paper. _Yuuko._

The answer was immediate, as if she had been waiting for the contact. _Kimihiro._

He set to detailing the latest incidents, describing the changes that he had observed in the city. The start of the turning tide in the second world.

It was the start of a long night.

~x~X~x~

Tense, eh? And this is just the beginning *evil smile*


	83. Royal Summons II

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**ROYAL SUMMONS**

**II**

Kimihiro wasn't happy.

Doumeki had been glancing at him periodically through breakfast but Kimihiro hadn't even noticed. He'd been picking listlessly at his food. Kimihiro had helped himself to portions from several of the platters but Doumeki suspected that it was only because he didn't want to deal with any unsolicited additions.

Doumeki studied him over several mouthfuls. He was alert but the hollow look of his eyes said that he hadn't gotten much sleep. Something that had become a trend since their visit to the Northern Ward. Kimihiro had been feverishly trying to work out how the goryo had gotten into the city and sleep had been the first casualty. At the moment he was frozen in thought, a loaded fork forgotten in one hand.

Setting down his own fork, Doumeki reached across the table and laid his hand over Kimihiro's where it rested next to the plate. Kimihiro was so deep in thought that he barely registered the move except for a faint movement of fingers as if to reassure himself that Doumeki was really there.

Kimihiro blinked, suddenly realizing what he was doing. He gave their hands a quick worried look then raised his eyes to Doumeki's face. "You shouldn't be here this morning." Despite his words, he hadn't moved his hand.

Doumeki didn't either. "Why not?"

That got a reaction. A look of disbelief flashed across Kimihiro's face quickly followed by a familiar look of irritation. "I heard about your audience yesterday." He started to slide his hand out from beneath Doumeki's. "I can imagine what it was about."

Doumeki caught the retreating hand. "I was told not to see you again."

Kimihiro's eyes flashed down to their hands in an annoyed glance before returning to Doumeki's face. "So you came anyway." His words were irritated but his mouth was twitching. And he didn't start to remove his hand again. "That wasn't the wisest thing to do." But there was no real censure in his voice, as if he had expected as much from Doumeki.

"Maybe not." Riku had been vaguely horrified when Doumeki had told him where he was going that morning but it had faded into resignation. A rather similar reaction to what Kimihiro showed now.

Kimihiro's lips twitched again. He gripped Doumeki's hand briefly and then pulled his hand free to pick up his knife. "You're an idiot."

An idiot. It was the first time that Kimihiro had ever made such a comment. Several months ago he wouldn't have even dared to say something so familiarly disrespectful but now it slipped easily between his lips. With no apology to follow.

Doumeki smiled.

He watched Kimihiro eat for a few moments; small mouthfuls but now showing signs of appetite. Doumeki picked up his own fork and resumed eating. It was one of the better breakfasts he had enjoyed. "My mother doesn't like you." It was an understatement but Doumeki wasn't going to repeat what she had said.

Kimihiro's chewing slowed. His dark eyes rose to Doumeki's face, a slightly wary expression on his face. "I'm aware of that."

"Is that the reason why you don't wear your crest?" Doumeki had always wondered about it. At first he thought it was part of Kimihiro's efforts to move unnoticed but the lord didn't even wear the cherry blossom and dragon crest on his clothes in the comfort of his own home.

Kimihiro's fork paused mid-air. His eyes flicked up in surprised dark blue stare. "Partly." He slowly set the fork down on his plate, gaze lowering once more. "It was easier to pass unnoticed."

Doumeki didn't miss the past tense. "But not anymore." He took a bite of bacon, cooked just enough to be crunchy around the edges. So that had been what Hikideshi had meant.

"No." Kimihiro's voice was distracted as he glanced at Doumeki, wearing an expression that was concerned and slightly grim at the same time. "It's too late for that." He paused, eyes briefly moving to the far wall. "And in come cases it's caused more harm than good." He picked up his fork again and fell silent.

Doumeki looked at the large portrait hanging on the wall. So Kimihiro was aware of the rumours. Including the latest malicious whispers. They hadn't stopped. All his warning to Lady Fukao had done was stop the creation of more. What had been let loose still circulated, embellished with all the loving detail that the court tended to lavish on the despicable. Even Katsurou hadn't been able to do much to temper the venom. But hopefully the old man could divert it with the new gossip he was no doubt manufacturing now. His mother had certainly given him some material yesterday, Doumeki reflected humourlessly.

Kimihiro's mother stared serenely at him, her smile warm with a hint of amusement. Almost as if she had known when she was sitting for the portrait that it would watch over her son after she was gone. The joined hands on her shoulder and the loving gaze that Kimihiro's father bestowed upon her, showed the type of people they were.

A hazy memory surfaced. When his father had been alive and his mother had been laughing in the gazebo. So different from yesterday.

He looked back at Kimihiro. It was clear that Kimihiro had loved both of his parents dearly. It was impossible for anyone who knew Kimihiro to consider what the rumours said, that he had been the cause of their deaths. He felt a spurt of anger at the thought. But a glance at Kimihiro showed that he didn't share it. Aside from the faint frown he wore, Kimihiro appeared to be focused on eating. But Doumeki knew that he was hurt by it. His body had hunched up slightly, the narrow shoulders bowed, and his gaze was fixed on the plate in front of him.

Doumeki picked up his fork again and turned his attention back to eating. Kimihiro didn't want to discuss it and he was happy to comply.

Silence fell over the table as they both ate. It was a comfortable silence, with no need for words. Doumeki watched Kimihiro for the most part. Amusing himself by staring at the pieces of hair that stuck out at strange angles. Thinking over the situation.

Kimihiro's reactions to him had changed drastically since they had met. After the first bewildered looks and unsettled stares, he had gotten slowly used to Doumeki's intrusion into his life. His skittish behaviour had settled into a prickly acceptance. Reluctantly allowing himself to be persuaded but warily, and often irritably, regarding each move. Before New Years, it had gotten to the point that he had only given a misgiving glance, or a remonstration if they were in public.

But now…There had almost been panic in Kimihiro's eyes the evening Doumeki had visited after New Years. It hadn't lasted long but Doumeki had seen it. He'd been perplexed at the sudden change until it occurred to him that Kimihiro had probably been doing what he usually did – thinking about the situation and getting worked up about it. Still, it had been a caution. Kimihiro was easily spooked and if Doumeki wasn't careful, he might frighten him off for good. After some consideration Doumeki had come to conclusion that it was safest to wait until Kimihiro started to show some sign of reciprocation.

Doumeki thoughtfully scooped up some scrambled eggs. The only question was how long he would last before Kimihiro made a move. He chewed the eggs, the rich flavour barely registering as he stared at Kimihiro across the table. He had changed in anticipation of breakfast. It was a pity because Doumeki had come to anticipate seeing Kimihiro in one of his many robes. It was in part why he had taken to coming at odd hours recently.

But Doumeki didn't really mind what he was wearing now. It was a high-necked tunic that flowed down to mid-thigh, a deep purple that bordered on plum decorated with a red and gold phoenix that trailed fire over his left shoulder. It was fastened by a series of cloth ties that ran from his neck down the front of his chest. While Kimihiro wore it unselfconsciously, it wasn't something that he would have worn in public. It gave a slightly informal impression, just one of the many signs that Kimihiro had accepted his presence as commonplace.

Doumeki eyed the top tie of the high collar. Kimihiro was always immaculately dressed so it wasn't a surprise that every tie was fastened. But Doumeki reflected that having a button or two unfastened wouldn't have hurt. Maybe a few more than that-

There was a knock at the door. It opened and Hikideshi slipped inside, closing the door softly behind him. He gave Doumeki a quick sidelong glance and then started towards the table. Kimihiro had turned as he entered and now his frown deepened as the butler approached.

Hikideshi stopped at the table, his dark gaze taking in the state of the table; the quantity of food that had been devoured. A slight smile curved his lips as he saw the evidence of food on his lord's plate. "A Lord Tatsuya is here to see you, my lord." The butler continued before Kimihiro could comment. "His Lordship is waiting in the foyer."

Kimihiro cast Hikideshi a sharp look at that last piece of information and Doumeki eyed the butler more closely. He had gotten the impression that Hikideshi didn't let just anyone within the mansion. It hadn't passed his notice that each action the butler made was a quiet suggestion. In this case, an urging to see the unexpected guest.

Kimihiro had obviously come to the same conclusion. He looked at Doumeki then the plates on the table. It was clear that he was thinking about appearances again.

Doumeki raised an eyebrow when Kimihiro met his gaze. If Lord Tatsuya came to visit at such an hour, he could deal with the evidence of his interruption.

Kimihiro hesitated. "Send him in." He placed his knife and fork precisely on his plate. Obviously not intending to eat anymore.

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro cast a glance at Doumeki but the Keeper wasn't paying any attention. Decision made, he was helping himself to another serving of eggs. Doumeki seemed unconcerned that he would be seen having breakfast at the manor. It was reckless, an almost wilful display that he was ignoring his mother's commands: being seen at Kimihiro's breakfast table the day after she had summoned him.

Or perhaps not. Lord Tatsuya wasn't exactly in Her Majesty's good graces. It was uncertain whether he would actually tell someone that he had seen Doumeki. Kimihiro frowned. Doumeki likely knew about Lord Tatsuya's contacts better than he did. If he made no objections, he had probably already thought about the consequences.

Though it could be simply that Doumeki didn't care for appearances. Kimihiro scowled. He'd already made that clear.

There was a knock and Kimihiro turned to see Hikideshi opening the door to let in their unexpected guest.

Lord Tatsuya was young, with dark eyes and a confident, assured way of moving that drew the eyes. His dark hair was pulled back at the nape of his neck in a style that had gone out of fashion nearly fifty years ago. His clothes were modern, though: the fine trousers, shirt, vest and jacket that were commonly worn by the nobility. But the embroidery that covered his jacket, rising up his sleeves and covering his torso, was of an ancient design. The five interlinked circles. A representation of the five elements, a symbol of the old religion.

The young lord wasn't afraid to state his politics.

"Lord Watanuki, I apologise for interrupting-" Lord Tatsuya took several steps into the room only to stop dead when he registered the presence of the other man sitting at the table. His eyes widened in surprised recognition. "Your Highness!" He made a deep bow.

Doumeki nodded in acknowledgement and turned back to his plate, scooping up some eggs.

Lord Tatsuya seemed as put off by Doumeki's relaxed manner as much as his unexpected presence. He stood uncertainly, his confident entrance ground to a halt, clearly not knowing how to proceed.

Kimihiro took pity on him. Doumeki's behaviour was hard to swallow even for those who were used to it. "Lord Tatsuya." The man's gaze turned to him. "What bring you to see me?" Kimihiro was curious - he knew the young lord's strong support for adherence to the old ways. Lord Tatsuya hadn't been quiet about his stance, expressing his opinions quite openly in court. His father's connections were a factor in his freedom and Kimihiro had assumed that the lord's politicking was simply a test of his independence. While he wasn't shy about his opinions, he had only pursued avenues that had kept within the bounds of acceptable rebellion. He hadn't sought out the truly unorthodox dissidents on the outskirts of the social sphere.

Which made the move of coming to see him today all the more interesting.

Lord Tatsuya's dark eyes had fixed on Kimihiro at his words and now his face took on a suddenly determined cast. "Lord Watanuki, I'm here to ask for your aid." Almost involuntarily, his eyes slid to Doumeki again.

Kimihiro followed his gaze. Doumeki was still eating, only the occasional glance to show that he was listening. "His Highness is aware of my dealings." He turned back to Lord Tatsuya. The young man was darting glances between them both, uncertainty on his face. Kimihiro leaned over and pushed a chair back from the table in silent invitation. Doumeki was unnerving under normal circumstances but he was being particularly difficult today.

The young lord hesitated then slowly walked around the table and took the offered seat. His eyes swept the table, the taking in the spread of dishes. "I apologise for interrupting your meal." He was more subdued, his words extremely formal.

Kimihiro nodded in acceptance of the apology. He'd already finished eating and Doumeki certainly wasn't letting the interruption disturb his breakfast. Lord Tatsuya might as well not have been in the room. "What sort of aid are you referring to?"

The lord's eyes flicked to Doumeki then focused on Kimihiro. "I need your help with a situation." He paused, obviously gathering his thoughts. "While my political stance is well known, not all of my friends share my views." He didn't sound bothered by the fact. "Lady Nettleton is one of these. While Devnet is open-minded about the practise of the old ways, she doesn't believe in the need to revive many of them."

"Like the festivals." The young lord had been petitioning the queen for the last few years to have them reinstated. And Doumeki recently. The Keeper was munching on some bacon but Kimihiro was aware that he was listening intently.

The lord caught himself before his eyes could dart to Doumeki again. He met Kimihiro's gaze gravely. "Yes. I still believe that the festivals are essential for the empire's continued survival. If we don't hold to who we are, then the present is nothing."

Kimihiro studied him for a moment. He believed it. But whether it was a simple matter of tradition or the young lord knew the festivals' true purpose wasn't clear.

Lord Tatsuya suddenly frowned. "Devnet isn't one to believe in-" he hesitated "-superstitions. She isn't very familiar with what she regards as folklore, either. And that's partly the reason why she hasn't linked the incidents that have happened over the last few weeks as stemming from a common cause."

"Incidents?" Kimihiro was wary. After what had happened at the hospital, he had become aware of exactly how much in the Northern Quarter had slipped through the gaps. He suspected this was one of them.

"A month ago there was a fire in the kitchen of Lady Burrell's townhouse after Devnet visited. Fortunately no one was hurt. But a week later while Devnet was travelling through the Northern Hub there was a carriage accident." Lord Tatsuya's voice was grim. "Lady Spencer escaped with only bruises but Lord Spencer broke his arm."

Kimihiro frowned. He had heard something about a carriage accident but had assumed that it was only that.

The young lord's eyes fixed on a crystal decanter on the sideboard. "Devnet thought it was coincidence but there have been other accidents in the Northern Hub in the vicinity of Devnet's townhouse. The milkman's cart lost a wheel, spilling most of his wares – his horse was lamed and later had to be put down. One of the chimney boys servicing the area slipped and nearly cracked his head open – the chimney sweep he assisted insist that it wasn't just an accident." He frowned. "Virtually every tradesman who had come in contact with Devnet or her household has met with some sort of misfortune. Simple accidents if there weren't so many of them. And it's not only the people who interact with the household that have met with misfortune. Members of the maids' families have gotten injured and fallen ill. The wife of a peddler who visited the house to sell his wares had a miscarriage that afternoon. There's talk that household might be cursed." His frown deepened. "There's even word on the street of strange things seen in the vicinity. Shadows and strange people loitering in the streets."

It certainly sounded like there was a supernatural problem. "I can see why Lady Nettleton didn't notice what was happening." Noble ladies didn't usually pay attention to the misfortunes the lower classes had to deal with. It seemed that Lord Tatsuya had been keeping a close eye on the Northern Quarter. Kimihiro was impressed. And surprised. He hadn't even suspected the lord had taken his interests beyond the small political rallies he held. They had involved a small clique of young nobles, not the wider community.

Lord Tatsuya flashed a small smile. "I have a younger brother and two younger sisters. Any gossip that has a hint of the supernatural usually gets passed on. I'm also a friend of Lady Ikeda. She regularly visits the bazaar as well as several charities and poorhouses in the Northern Ward. She knows of my interests and passes along word when something strange is happening."

Kimihiro exchanged a look with Doumeki. He'd stopped eating and was making no pretence of listening in on the conversation. His eyes lowered to his sleeve and then rose to meet Kimihiro's. He was free for the day.

Kimihiro doubted it was the case but didn't say anything. Doumeki could handle his duties. "I'd have to see Lady Nettleton. Would you be able to bring her here?"

Lord Tatsuya shook his head. "But I'm meeting her for lunch at the Bergamot. It's a small café just outside the Southern Hub." He leaned forward slightly, a thread of eagerness showing on his face. "Then you could see what's happening."

The Bergamot. Kimihiro was familiar with the establishment. He was familiar with the entire area. He'd had to visit it several times when Haruka had been alive. Nestled in the centre of the middle class district and with a history that stretched back to the founding of the city, it had always been a hotspot of supernatural activity. Especially in the period before Haruka had erected several dosojin to reinforce the streets channelling spirits along the correct paths.

Kimihiro frowned. He doubted Lord Tatsuya knew of the significance of the area. Kimihiro suspected he had chosen the location because it wasn't often frequented by the upper classes. It was a haunt of the middle classes and at this time of day there wouldn't be too many people. Kimihiro studied Lord Tatsuya across the table. It all had the feeling of careful planning.

"Are you acquainted with Lady Yuhara?" The lady had come to see him several weeks ago. Her visit had stuck in his mind because of the way she differed from most of the visitors he received. The lady had been refreshingly open to the possibility that she had a close brush with the supernatural. But what had been truly memorable was the polite way that she had treated him. She had been quiet but there had been polite respect in her regard not aversion. It had been unusual and had stuck in his mind.

As had the rather nasty state of the bow she had brought him.

The young lord met his gaze, not even trying to deny the connection. "We've been close friends for years."

It looked like Lady Yuhara's visit had also been in order to assess him. Kimihiro couldn't bring himself to blame either of them, considering the circumstances. It was wise of them to be cautious in approaching him with the reputation he had.

There was a soft knock. Kimihiro turned to see Hikideshi entering the room. The butler cast a glance over the table as he made a beeline for Kimihiro. He handed over a letter. "A messenger just arrived."

Kimihiro accepted it, turning the blank envelope over to look at the seal. A crest featuring a stylized branch of wisteria hanging over water was impressed into the green wax.

His heart skipped a beat. He had been waiting for a reply for weeks. "Excuse me a moment." Kimihiro barely registered Lord Tatsuya's nod and Doumeki's curious stare, absently accepting the letter opener Hikideshi held out. It was the one he usually kept in the study - Hikideshi must have taken a quick detour, not willing to let him open it by hand.

Kimihiro inserted the point of the letter opener under the folded flap of paper and slid it sideways in a swift flick of his wrist, neatly cutting the wax seal in half. He unfolded the small sheet and handed the letter opener back to Hikideshi.

There were only a two lines of writing in a careful elegant hand. _Imperial Botanical Gardens. Three o'clock._ There was no signature but Kimihiro was well-familiar with the lady's ways.

"Thank you, Hikideshi." Kimihiro gave the butler a small nod.

A slight smile creased Hikideshi's lips. He knew what it meant. "My lord." He made a small bow and left, off to make arrangements.

Kimihiro tucked the letter into his jacket pocket and turned back to his guests. Lord Tatsuya bore a slightly distracted polite expression but Doumeki was making no pretence of his curiosity. He glanced at the door closing behind Hikideshi and then back to Kimihiro in question.

"I have another engagement this afternoon-" Doumeki's eyes narrowed slightly at his words "-but hopefully I'll be able to solve Lady Nettleton's problem in the time I have."

The young lord had looked slightly disappointed as he started talking but his expression lightened as he realized that Kimihiro was agreeing to meet with Lady Nettleton. "Thank you, Lord Watanuki. I'm grateful for your help." He stood and gave a small bow to both of them. "I'll leave you to your breakfast."

Hikideshi appeared opening the door again and held it open for the lord to depart.

Doumeki watched him leave the room but his eyes slid back to Kimihiro, a silent question.

Kimihiro slid his hand in his pocket and retrieved the missive he had received. He handed it to Doumeki. "It seems that you'll have your audience with Lady Heath."

~x~X~x~


	84. Royal Summons III

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**ROYAL SUMMONS**

**III**

Kimihiro was staring out the window with a slight frown on his face. His gloved hands were wrapped tightly around the head of his cane but they had been for the whole ride into the city. It was hard to say what was bothering him: their reason for coming to the city, the meeting later in the afternoon or something else.

"What do you think it is?" Doumeki asked as a distraction as much as out of curiosity.

Kimihiro turned from the window to meet his gaze. "It's hard to say." He frowned. "But it sounds like Lady Nettleton might have something in her possession that becomes active in certain situations. If it were a curse or an elemental, then Lady Nettleton would be the one who was experiencing accidents rather than those around her." He hesitated. "Unless it's the lady herself."

Doumeki studied Kimihiro's expression. He wasn't hiding his worry. "Is she likely to be a threat?"

Kimihiro's frown deepened. "It's possible." He sounded reluctant to admit it. "If it is the case, I doubt she's aware of what she's doing. The incidents appear to be random rather than deliberately calculated." He was silent for a moment and when he spoke again, his voice was quieter. "I think-"

Something caught Kimihiro's attention outside the window. A look of surprise flashed across his face quickly followed by a deep frown. Doumeki leaned across him to look out but the carriage was moving so quickly that whatever had caught Kimihiro's attention had disappeared from sight. Or it was something that he wouldn't have been able to see anyway. He leaned back, looking questioningly at Kimihiro.

"It was a yurei." His dark blue eyes darted back to the window briefly. "I didn't expect to see it." There was an unhappy edge to his words.

From what Doumeki knew, yurei could appear anywhere as long as it was close to where they died or something they were tied to. If Kimihiro was surprised to see a spirit then it was probably somewhere it wasn't meant to be. Which suggested Kimihiro knew it. Doumeki frowned.

The carriage started to slow. A glance outside the window showed a facade of small shopfronts, some slightly shabby, others boasting elegant paintjobs. There was a steady stream of people passing down the street - even as Doumeki watched two young ladies passed the carriage, lacy parasols held in their hands - but not as many as there would have been on a main street. Kimihiro had suggested they stop some distance away and arrive on foot. It could have been in order not to draw attention, which the carriage inevitably did, but Doumeki was beginning to suspect that Kimihiro wanted to have a look around before they found a suitable place to wait until Lady Nettleton arrived.

The carriage drew up on the side of the road, stopping alongside the footpath. On the less busy street it was quickly done and Doumeki's footman was soon opening the door for them. Doumeki stepped down out of the carriage and waited for Kimihiro. He alighted from the cabin unaided and stood for a moment, scanning the street with a quick dark blue gaze. His eyes met Doumeki's a moment later and he nodded. Doumeki gave a signal to the driver who acknowledged it with a wordless nod. They left the footman climbing up next to the driver to wait with him until their return.

Their arrival hadn't gone unnoticed but apparently they weren't the only nobles who chose to avoid the busier streets. There were a few glances but none of them were surprised. Polite nods were all that met them as they walked down the street; their clothes might have set them apart but they were greeted cordially and with a warmth that the increased business over the last decade might have been partly responsible. The money of lords and ladies had done much for the prosperity of the area.

He glanced at Kimihiro. He seemed more relaxed, Doumeki noted as he dodged a small puddle. While he had changed after breakfast into attire more suitable for an outing, he didn't look nearly as guarded as he had when they had visited the Hub. But here they had less chance of running into any of the nobles that clung to the court and his mother's policies-

"M'lord!" The voice was slightly desperate.

Kimihiro paused and turned towards the source of the call. A small child stood under the shelter of a shopfront awning. From the ragged skirts and much-mended shawl, Doumeki guessed it was a girl. It was the only way to tell - the bulky layers of clothing the child wore made her body a formless shape. She had an old basket that looked like it had been scavenged from a garbage heap hung over one arm. It was filled with greenery and small spots of colour: grass, leaves and a few fragile blooms.

Her expression had grown hopeful when Kimihiro stopped and now she took a step forward, badly-worn leather boots scuffing the pavement. "Buy a flower?" She had a small posy clutched in one hand, a pair of tiny flowers nestled in few shoots of bracken.

Doumeki saw Kimihiro's eyes shift from the small nodding heads of the flowers grasped in the thin hand to the ragged shawl that hung around the girl's shoulders. He could practically feel him weakening.

The girl must have sensed it too. She smiled up at Kimihiro, moving further forward under the shelter of the awning. "Just two pieces." She glanced at Doumeki, eyes startlingly dark in her pale face, her expression growing more hopeful. "Or three for two."

Kimihiro glanced at Doumeki, a surprised look on his face. But it soon faded into bemusement. His eyes turned back to the girl and he slowly walked forward, joining the girl under the awning. He slid a hand into his pocket and withdrew it with a faint sound of coins. "Two please."

The girl's face brightened. She shifted the small posy she held into the hand holding the basket and then carefully selected one which she held to Kimihiro. He blinked at the sight of it and took it carefully, gravely handing over the coins in exchange. Doumeki couldn't see them but the girl's expression brightened once more and the coins were slipped into a pocket.

Doumeki suspected that it was more than she had asked.

The girl glanced up and caught him staring. Her mouth parted in a quick smile, revealing crooked and chipped teeth. Once more her hand reached into the basket and pulled out another small bouquet. But instead of holding it out to Kimihiro, she darted over and held it out to him.

Doumeki looked questioningly at Kimihiro. Cane gripped in one hand, the other holding onto the small posy he had bought, he suddenly looked out of place on the street. He nodded.

Doumeki looked down at the offered flowers. The posy was a mixture dark green leaves and grasses, sporting at its centre a fragile little violet of dark blue. Like Kimihiro's eyes.

"Thanks." He accepted the posy, his fingers brushing hers. They were cold even through his gloves.

The girl smiled again then darted back to Kimihiro and gave a clumsy little bow. "M'lord." And then she was off down the street, offering her wares to other pedestrians.

Doumeki followed her with his eyes, seeing how she was ignored. Not one of the people she approached took any notice, brushing past her without a glance. "Thanks for the flowers." A second gift. He wondered if it counted as sign of Kimihiro's changing feelings.

Kimihiro didn't get irritated as he had expected. He met Doumeki's gaze solemnly. "You're welcome."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed. That wasn't like Kimihiro. There was something-

A flash of movement caught his attention. The flower girl was only a few meters away. She had spotted a lady on the other side of the road and was calling out to her. The woman hesitated and the girl darted out onto the street.

Right into the path of an oncoming carriage.

Doumeki was already moving forward when a hard hand grasped his arm, jerking him back.

The horses ran right over the girl, not even slowing. The carriage sped pass them and continued down the street.

The flower girl was still running across the road, unaware of the carriage that had just ripped through her.

"She's a spirit." There couldn't be any other explanation.

"He." Kimihiro let go of his arm.

Doumeki turned to him in surprise. He?

Kimihiro glanced at him then turned back to the small figure crossing the road. "He was a seer of sorts. Powerful in his own way. His parents dressed him like a girl and found him tasks suited to that appearance. An old practise to hide him from the second world." He frowned down at the gutter. Doumeki followed his gaze to see a twisted bundle of black fur on the curb. A dead cat that had been pushed off the road. "Habit becomes belief. Belief can become real." Kimihiro's voice was devoid of emotion. "It's an ancient practise, used before wards."

"But it didn't work." The spirit had reached the other side of the road. The woman who had stopped was staring at him, her face white. She had seen the carriage as well.

"It did." The woman was still standing in shock. The flower boy reached out and touched her and she flinched. "He was safe from supernatural predators but not human ones." Kimihiro's voice was quiet. "He was robbed and killed."

The woman looked across the street and saw them staring. A look of fear crossed face and she suddenly hurried down the sidewalk, ignoring the cries of the spirit which trailed forlornly after her.

"In cases where someone dies a violent death sometimes they don't remember it." Kimihiro's voice was soft. "They just continue as they lived without knowing they died."

Doumeki stared across the street. The boy had stopped, staring in the direction where the woman had disappeared. After a moment he started moving again, approaching people who ignored him.

"Few people can see him. And not even all of those have sight." Kimihiro was watching him. "I was surprised that you did. But he seems to choose who sees him." With one last glance across the road, he left the shelter of the awning and started walking down the street.

Doumeki followed, glancing down at the small posy he held. "How long has he been here?"

Kimihiro glanced back, eyes dark. "A long time."

~x~X~x~

It wasn't as busy here. There were a few second glances but not for the usual reasons. A woman escorted by her husband gave them a second look at they passed. She wasn't the only one but Doumeki was oblivious. Most of those walking the street were shopping, peering into display windows, thought there were a few neatly-dressed men who strode past briskly on some matter of business. There were one or two workers among the strollers, sweepers and dustmen, who gave them respectful salutes. But none of them saw the flower boy.

Kimihiro glanced back at the spirit, which was still trying to gather the attention of any potential customers, his basket of small posies hung over one arm. None of them saw him and he continued to opportune one after the other, hopelessly trying to get their attention. The pedestrians only walked on, unaware of the spirit that called out to them and ran to stand in front of them in a futile attempt to stop them. It was an afterlife of being ignored, rebuffed by those around him.

But the boy had resisted any attempts to send him to the second world. It had been Haruka who had showed Kimihiro the spirit the first time they had come to the area. The spirit had made for the older man as soon as he saw him, offering him flowers.

Just as he had Haruka's grandson.

Kimihiro's steps slowed. He hadn't expected that. He hadn't thought that Doumeki had seen the boy at all. It was only when he had accepted the flowers that Kimihiro realized Doumeki had seen him all along. It was more than a simple choice of wanting to appear to certain people. Ayaka only appeared to someone when he had some piece of information to impart.

Kimihiro glanced down at the small posy he held. It was put together somewhat clumsily but the meaning was still clear. There was only one flower, placed in the centre of the little bouquet, a small yellow bloom that he couldn't identify. It was the same colour as Doumeki's eyes, a pale shade of amber that was almost gold. The presence of the tiny sprigs of box and borage planted next to it reinforced the idea that it represented the Southern Keeper. Stoicism and bluntness were Doumeki personified.

The bloom and its accompanying sprigs were nested a cage of privet - _defence_ - but Kimihiro's attention was for the stems that had been planted between their branches. Even without their flowers, Kimihiro was able to identify them.

There was a short thin stem, nearly obscured by the small leafy branches that sprouted from it. Each had three small elongated oval leaves clustered together and two smaller leaves further down the branch where it met with the main stem. Trefoil.

_Revenge._

Broad light green leaves, hairy and bluntly serrated alternated around a thick hairy stem. Kimihiro's heart sank as he saw the round seed pods that nestled in thin spiky leaves sprouting from the base of each leaf. Lobelia.

_Malevolence._

Paired long-stalked coarsely toothed leaves sprouted from a thick, branchless stem. Leaves and stem alike were covered with thousands of transparent hairs that leant them a sinister appearance. Kimihiro grimaced. Nettle.

_Slander._

The last he recognized immediately. The long stalk-less pale green leaves, lance-shaped with pointed tips, sprouting from the branching stems were familiar even without the bright orange flowers. Marigolds. He'd received enough of them over the years to know what they meant. _Grief_.

But there was an older symbolism. _Pain and cruelty._

Kimihiro stared down at the leafy posy, suddenly feeling tired. It didn't tell him more than he already knew but he had been hoping for some sort of hope. Some sort of aid to guide him. He used a gloved finger to part the cuttings, taking care to avoid the nettle, looking for something that he might have missed.

A small sprig caught his eye. A thin, feathery stem with hundreds of tiny stalks that hadn't quite developed into leaves. It had been half hidden between the central flower and the privet, only just visible. Dill. It symbolized only one thing and that meant- _Lust_.

Kimihiro flushed as the image from Yuuko's book rose in his mind. With the positioning of the sprig there was no mistaking what it meant. And worse yet, he couldn't deny it. Not after the thoughts that had crossed his mind over the last few days-

"A blue violet."

The words made him start. As if he had been caught in some compromising situation.

Doumeki was peering down at his own posy, focusing on the blue violet in its centre. "Does this mean you?"

For a minute Kimihiro didn't know what he was talking about but then the meaning Doumeki was referring to dawned in his mind. _A return of love._ Kimihiro scowled. "It's watchfulness." Or at least that was the only meaning he was going to accept. There was no return of- "You have to watch yourself." He fixed Doumeki with a narrow stare. "And that means what you say in public." But it could have also meant the need to watch for something. Knowing Doumeki, it was probably both.

The thought made him uneasy and Kimihiro looked over the rest of the small bouquet. Bearded crepis replaced privet - protection instead of defence - but there was a larger range of species intruding into its barrier. Moss. _Maternal love._ Fennel. _Strength._ Hellebore. _Scandal._ Blackthorn. _Difficulty._ Oleander. _Beware._ It was an ambiguous statement. What was threat and what was aid was hard to distinguish.

Kimihiro suddenly realized that Doumeki was staring at his posy as intently as he was at Doumeki's. He hurriedly tilted the small bouquet so that its contents were obscured. But the look on Doumeki's face showed that he'd seen. He was frowning, his previous light expression darkened into concern. Apparently Doumeki's courtly education had included the language of flowers as well. It was the first time that Kimihiro found himself wishing that Doumeki _hadn't_ paid attention to his tutors.

A slight tingle in his fingers had Kimihiro's attention returning to the posy he held. It was wavering, the flower and leaves fading, their forms starting to lose definition. He glanced at Doumeki who was staring down at his own small bouquet, frowning at the disintegrating plants.

"They aren't real." Or at least not in any sense that could be understood. "They're made entirely by Ayaka. That's why there are unseasonable flowers." The disintegration was speeding up now that they were reaching the limits of the small spirit's power. Kimihiro could feel the branches shift within his grip, crumbling to spill out as thousands of invisible grains of power slipped from his hand. He watched the last of it disappear, frowning briefly as the stubborn sprig of dill was the last to die.

That didn't seem right somehow. Kimihiro scowled. It was almost as if he was being teased.

"There's some left." Kimihiro's eyebrow shot up in surprise at Doumeki's words even as a horrid suspicion surfaced. It had better not be a sprig of dill-

It wasn't. Something else remained on Doumeki's palm. Mallows. An ancient charm against evil spirits. And among them, the single blue violet that had been at the bouquet's centre.

Kimihiro simply stared at it for a minute. He soon became aware that Doumeki's eyes were fixed on his face, narrow gold disks. Kimihiro slowly straightened, realized that he had been leaning down to have a closer look.

"You don't have anything left?" Doumeki's gaze was moving to Kimihiro's empty hand even as he spoke.

"No." Kimihiro's eyes lingered on the slender stems resting on Doumeki's palm – he was trying to ignore the violet. "I think you're the one who's meant to have them." Doumeki sent him a sharp look at that comment but Kimihiro was too distracted by his thoughts to worry about it.

Protection against spirits. Ayaka wouldn't have given mallows to Doumeki unless he thought the Keeper would need them. Kimihiro's frown deepened. And that he had given it to Doumeki alone, suggested that Doumeki was the only one who needed it.

Kimihiro glanced back down the street but the flower boy had disappeared.

~x~X~x~

Yay for the language of flowers! XD


	85. Royal Summons IV

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**ROYAL SUMMONS**

**IV**

Spirits crowded against the glass. There had only been a few at first but as time passed more had gathered, all of them staring into the café window as if it held what they had been searching for all their lives. Kimihiro met the gaze of an old beggar, the old man's bloodshot jaundiced eyes glittering hungrily when the spirit saw it had his attention, and determinedly turned his gaze away.

They had chosen the cafe for the view it afforded of the street. From where they sat in the window they had a clear line of sight to the establishment where Lord Tatsuya had arranged to meet with Lady Nettleton. A number of large pots filled with small manicured pines had been set outside the window, blocking them from the casual stare of passers-by but they were no shield against the local inhabitants of the second world. They had sensed Kimihiro's presence as soon as he had stepped out of the carriage and by the time they had reached the café, he had a small crowd of them following every move he made.

It had been a long time since Kimihiro had been on the streets and outside wards for a long period. He had forgotten the constant queasy feeling that made knots of his stomach and sent small chills through him. The stifling, oppressive sensation that felt like the spirits that followed him were leaning on him, trying to get past skin and to the power that lay inside. It made him feel ill.

The only saving grace was that Doumeki was with him. The darker, more predatory shades kept their distance, standing on the other side of the road. But Kimihiro could still feel their attention fixed on him, their patient stares unmoving. They were just waiting for their chance.

Movement at his side had Kimihiro's gaze turning to Doumeki. The Keeper was using a pair of small tongs to pick up a few sandwiches from the tiered server and transfer them to the small plate on the table in front of him. He did it flawlessly, a graceful, well-practiced procedure that spilt nothing and made the transfer look easy.

Even through his discomfort, Kimihiro felt a small spurt of irritation. It was proof that Doumeki could behave himself if he wanted to. But it was somewhat galling that he reserved it for public rather than extending Kimihiro the courtesy of good behaviour during his visits.

Though - the thought was grudging - it also showed how much Doumeki relaxed in his company. It was an honour of sorts, he supposed. Though he could do without some of the honours Doumeki showered him with recently. The flowers that had been sent to the mansion a few days ago – apparently to match the vase - he could have done without. Kimihiro picked up his tea and drank, trying to ignore the spirits and Doumeki as much as he was able.

Something suddenly pressed up against the side of his leg. A firm pressure that- Kimihiro looked down to see Doumeki had moved so that his knee was pressed against Kimihiro's thigh.

What-? Kimihiro nearly inhaled his tea. He set his cup down unsteadily, nearly spilling the hot liquid over the table. "What are you doing?" It was a low hiss. They were somewhat removed from the other patrons in the cafe but Kimihiro was still wary of being overheard.

Doumeki had been eyeing the tiered trays of sandwiches, probably trying to decide which one to try next. He lifted the tongs in his hand and reached out for one, glancing at Kimihiro enquiringly. "Doesn't it help?"

Help what? Kimihiro shifted to try and pull away but Doumeki only moved his leg to continue the contact. Kimihiro sent him a warning stare that Doumeki ignored. He tried to move again-

A waitress passed to walk to a nearby table and Kimihiro froze. After setting down the ordered service, she turned and walked back the way she'd come, smiling at Kimihiro as they made eye contact. Kimihiro smiled weakly back, all-too aware of Doumeki's knee pressed up against his leg. Thank heavens for the table cloth that hid it from sight-

But it wasn't sight that was the problem. Even if he couldn't see it, Kimihiro could feel the warmth and pressure of his knee- If Doumeki kept pressing up against him like this, there was going to be trouble. What had possessed him to do it? How was Kimihiro meant to sort things out with the constant touches? At first it had been his hand at breakfast and now his leg-

An image sprung into his mind, line drawings of a leg and- Kimihiro thrust the memory from his mind, letting anger take over. Curse Doumeki and his touches. They were impossible to predict and shattered his efforts not to think of things-

Blindly he reached for his cup again, letting the hot porcelain heat his skin uncomfortably. Trying not to think at all.

Doumeki was still watching him, the wretch. Unaware or unconcerned by the discomfort he was causing. "You're looking better."

The gall! Kimihiro grit his teeth. Saying that. As if his touch did-

Oh. Kimihiro suddenly realized what Doumeki had been doing. He had been extending his warding abilities to Kimihiro to shield him from the ill-effects of the crowding spirits and allowing him to open his sight with more control.

"I'm fine, thank you." He picked up his teacup and took another sip, trying to hide his embarrassment. Doumeki hadn't had any ulterior motive in mind. It had been _him_ who had been thinking along inappropriate lines. He could feel the heat in his face as his blush deepened. Just what had happened to his hard-won control? And it wasn't even the spirits outside the window, but _Doumeki_ that had him acting like this-

A slight weight fell on his thigh. Tea nearly sprayed across the table as Kimihiro choked. One of Doumeki's hands had disappeared somewhere and Kimihiro had a terrible suspicion where it had gone.

Kimihiro set his teacup onto its saucer with a precise _click_. His other hand slid under the tablecloth. He took a hold of Doumeki's hand and lifted it from his leg, placing the offending appendage firmly back in Doumeki's lap.

Or at least that was what he intended. Doumeki clung onto his hand like a limpet, his fingers wrapping around Kimihiro's hand, and wouldn't let go.

Kimihiro tugged at his hand, trying to free it as surreptitiously as he could. A glance around the cafe showed that no one was paying any attention. He glared at Doumeki. "Let go!" It was a hissed whisper. He was getting angry. Doumeki was taking advantage of the situation. His eyes narrowed. He was beginning to suspect his first instinct had been right and that had been Doumeki's motivation from the start.

Doumeki simply stared at him for a moment. And then he smiled slightly, a smug look that only increased Kimihiro's anger. He didn't let go, only tightened his grip.

Kimihiro's right eye twitched violently and the fingers of his free hand clenched convulsively. If he was still holding the fragile teacup, he might have snapped the handle right off. They were holding hands (or more precisely Doumeki was holding his) on Doumeki's leg and Doumeki was _still_ pressed up against his thigh. And Doumeki kept eating as if nothing out of the ordinary was happening. Perfectly content.

The- the- There wasn't an insult that adequately described him! Kimihiro didn't have much of a choice about preventing Doumeki's attempts to court him but he didn't have to endure this. He tugged at his hand again. Then tried prying at the fingers that held his.

Doumeki didn't even react. He simply took a bite out of his next sandwich, not concerned in the slightest - either about opinion or Kimihiro's dreadful glares. Kimihiro was suddenly overcome with an urge to kick him that was extremely hard to deny.

But Doumeki was his prince, even though he never acted like it, and Kimihiro couldn't strike him no matter how tempting it was. It wouldn't do anything, anyway. Doumeki probably wouldn't even react except to give him some sort satisfied look or something.

Kimihiro scowled. The grip on his hand was tight enough that it would draw attention to pull free. He had the impression that Doumeki wasn't going to let go easily. But if he simply sat here and did nothing, then Doumeki would think that he was free to do it whenever he liked-

Something pulled at his senses. A painful feeling like an acid-coated finger had just scratched over his right eye. Doumeki, his knee and hand were forgotten as Kimihiro's attention snapped to the street outside the window.

The spirits outside the window were stirring. No longer were they fixed on him with steady stares. They were distracted, gazes darting behind them, some even turning partly to regard something in the street.

The sensation increased, a core of pain flaring in his eye. More spirits turned and a restless movement rippled through their forms. One or two of the weaker ones actually started drifting away, as if drawn by something beyond their control.

There was a suddenly dangerous shift. Like a violent wave suddenly rocking a moored boat. Reality distorted for a brief instant. And when it settled, things weren't right any more.

Other things started to appear on the street. Dark twisted things that usually kept to the shadows but were now drawn out, dark blots on the sun drenched street. Kurayami. Traces of elementals that had frayed and devolved into fragments of their former selves. They usually only had the strength to appear in the depth of night when their strength was greatest. But they were venturing out now, pulling themselves free of the cracks and shadows in which they had hidden, disregarding the damage the midday sun was wreaking on their forms.

And they weren't the only ones. Something worse was stirring.

The road had shifted. The cobbles that paved it were still in place, firm beneath the wheels and hooves that traversed them, but Kimihiro could see the thin dark lines that were snaking out, attempting to break the stones apart.

Kage. Kimihiro felt the blood drain from his face. They had been bound long ago. The road was meant to keep them in place. The dosojin Haruka had erected should have ensured that they couldn't break free.

"What's happening?" There was a peculiar edge in Doumeki's voice. He sounded strained.

Kimihiro suddenly realized that he had a death grip on Doumeki's hand. He released his hold, suddenly loosening his grip. "The street-" The tug became a stronger pull, like a thread being ripped from a piece of fabric, bunching the surrounding cloth. It rippled through wards, stirring up once quiet spirits into wakeful agitation.

A carriage had pulled up to the kerb further down the street. A black vehicle highlighted with trimmings of dark green. The footman opened the door and offered his hand to the lady who stepped out of the carriage. Even at the distance Kimihiro could see the peach and cream dress she wore was made in the latest fashion. His suspicions of her identity were confirmed when Lord Tatsuya appeared on the street to greet her.

Lady Nettleton.

Spirits began to rise. A large body materialized onto the street. A pale leg kicked and then the horse rolled up and staggered to its feet, ignoring the carriage that tore through its hindquarters. A skeletal-thin dog darted across the street, face fraying apart as a buggy cut through it. Both animals joined the crowd of spirits starting towards the woman who stood with Lord Tatsuya.

The pain in Kimihiro's eye sharpened as pull increased again.

More spectres passed the window. A thin woman holing a baby in her arms staggered past, her body starting to shred as she moved forward. She was followed by a skeletal boy, abnormally pale and his stick-like limbs protruding from filthy clothes that were little more than rags. Two young gentlemen suddenly appeared on the road, facing each other with swords in their hands. The blades dropped slowly to their sides as they turned towards Lady Nettleton. They started walking down the road towards her, ignoring the cart that was bearing down on them.

And under the passing spirits the thin lines, widening cracks, spread and branched with increasing speed.

Kimihiro seized his cane in his free hand and stood, not caring that their joined hands were suddenly revealed. He ignored the looks his sudden movement garnered from the cafe's other patrons and made for the door, barely registering how Doumeki let go of his hand and hastily tossed some money on the table. The clink of coins landing on the table merged with the jingle of the bell attached to the door as he let himself out onto the street.

The spirits on the sidewalk faltered as he left the protection of the café. Some turned back to him, their blank eyes reanimating as they came closer. But Kimihiro ignored the insubstantial hands that reached towards him and hurried down the street, watching the spread of the dark cracks across the road.

Startled eyes turned towards him as he made his way down the street. Couples strolling down the side walk and mature matrons pausing in the act of entering small shops. A young man in the clothes of a clerk ducked out of his way when he saw the lord bearing down on him. Kimihiro knew he was drawing attention but he didn't care at the moment. He was focused on the spirits that were moving to intercept him and the woman who stood talking with the young lord at the end of the street.

Lord Tatsuya had been right in his suspicions. There was definitely something wrong with Lady Nettleton. She was already surrounded. A crowd of shadowy figures stood around her, a semi-transparent haze of reaching hands and stretching necks. Not all of them were human, either – animals milled amid the human dead. The black cat he had spotted in the gutter was twining nervously at the edges, trying to get closer. Even as Kimihiro watched, more spirits were joining the crowd.

Kimihiro was aware of Doumeki catching up but he ignored him, concentrating on the lady ahead of him. He opened his sight wider, ignoring the pain that felt like jagged glass was being ground into his eye. Trying to determine what was creating such a pull on the second world and threatening to rip the fabric between both. It wasn't Lady Nettleton. She was like Doumeki, a blank in his sight. She didn't exist as far as the second world was concerned.

Which left something she was carrying. Some object that had recently come into her possession. The thought angered him but Kimihiro concentrated on pinpointing the source of the disturbance. It was small but powerful. As such it had to be made of materials that were able to hold the large amount of power that was stored in it. He scanned her clothes, looking for a brooch, a necklace or an earring. Something made of precious metals or stones-

There. A hatpin thrust through the brim of the small hat perched on the lady's head. It was barely visible, a small globe the size of a small pea that glinted gold in the sun. But it was the source. Even as he stared at it, the gold light flared in a bright explosion.

The spirits flocking around him faltered, turning toward Lady Nettleton once more.

He was only a few meters away now and Lord Tatsuya had spotted him. The young lord was turning, his eyes widening as he saw the intent expression on Kimihiro's face.

Kimihiro didn't have time for polite introductions. He darted forward and reached up towards Lady Nettleton's hat. His fingers closed around the small head of the hat pin and he pulled it free.

Lady Nettleton's small hat suddenly fell off her head, revealing her russet hair. She turned towards him, a look of shock on her face.

But Kimihiro had other problems. As if it had been waiting for his touch, the slender pin suddenly blazed, a thin line of gold which let out a flare of warmth that burned his fingers.

He suddenly found himself the focus of all the spirits that had gathered around Lady Nettleton. For a moment they simply stared at him and then they surged forward, swamping him in a toxic deluge.

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro moved before Doumeki could prevent him, suddenly rushing forward to snatch a hatpin from the lady's hat, jarring the small accessory free as he did so.

Lady Nettleton turned towards him, shock and growing anger visible on her face as she saw the hatpin in Kimihiro's pale hand and realized what had happened. She started to reach out to take it back but Lord Tatsuya suddenly reached out and pulled her back, moving in front of her. His eyes were on the hatpin, a wary look on his face.

Or maybe it was for Kimihiro. There was an almost wild look on the lord's face as he held the slender pin, eyes darting around him. Seeing something, Doumeki realized as he saw the black that had engulfed his blue eyes. And nothing good to judge from the look on his face.

Kimihiro's face suddenly lost all colour, his eyes rounding into black holes rimmed with white. The expression of horrified realization he wore made Doumeki's heart suddenly clench in fear. He was moving even as Kimihiro suddenly started to crumple, his body seeming to shrink in on itself as if under some great weight.

Doumeki threw an arm around him, holding him up, and snatched the hat pin from his fingers. He caught a quick glimpse - a small ball of orange coral in an ornate cage of gold set on a slender silver pin as long as one of his fingers – and then he was consumed by the feel of it. It burned to the touch. A fierce fire that seared through flesh and shot through tendon and bone. Instant agony.

Doumeki threw it to the ground and stomped on it, bringing his heel down hard on the jewelled end. It gave with a sickly crunch that sounded abnormally loud.

Kimihiro was leaning on him, his ribs expanding too fast in Doumeki grip. He was breathing hard and bent over, muffling hacking coughs in one pale fist. Dark blue eyes caught Doumeki's gaze for a moment and then fell shut as he tried to control another coughing fit.

Doumeki tightened his hold, willing him to get better.

Kimihiro stopped mid-cough, eyes flashing wide in shock. He straightened

So it worked. Doumeki felt a sense of mild surprise. But he wasn't complaining with the results.

He became aware of Lady Nettleton and Lord Tatsuya's stares. They were both surprised but Lady Nettleton's eyes were filled with building anger. She glared at him then glanced down at the destroyed hatpin. Her mouth tightened and her face darkened with a look of growing outrage. Doumeki could see that she would normally be viewed as attractive but her fine eyebrows were now lowered in a withering expression. She looked at him again, silently demanding answers. It was only the recognition of who he was that was keeping her silent.

Sometimes his status came in handy.

"I apologize, Lady Nettleton." The apology had limited affect on the anger in her face. "But it was a matter of urgency." Kimihiro didn't run unless the situation was serious. He picked up her hat from where it had fallen and handed it over.

After a second, gloved fingers closed over the felt brim. Her eyes flicked down to the crushed hatpin and back his face. A sceptical look was written across her face but Doumeki hadn't expected her to simply ignore the weak excuse because of who he was. If Lady Nettleton associated with Lord Tatsuya openly while moving in more popular circles then she had to be strong willed. "And what was so urgent about the destruction of a hatpin, Your Highness?" Her eyes fixed on Kimihiro, gazing at him narrowly.

But Kimihiro wasn't paying attention. He was staring down the street behind him. The stillness that had overtaken him told Doumeki that he had seen something.

"It was cursed." He knelt down, drawing her attention away from Kimihiro. The hatpin was partially crushed, the fragile golden lattice flattened and warped. The coral bead that had been encased within it was totally destroyed, reduced to shards and red dust. He reached out to touch it. There was no heat or pain. Doumeki picked up the pin and straightened, keeping Kimihiro in the periphery of his vision.

He hadn't even reacted to Doumeki's risky move to retrieve the hatpin.

"It was the cause of everything?" Lord Tatsuya glanced at Kimihiro, a small concerned frown on his face, before turning to Doumeki.

"It was." The quiet affirmative had all of them turning to Kimihiro. His eyes were unnaturally dark but he was seeing them again. He took the hatpin from Doumeki, turning it over between his fingers. "It attracts spirits indiscriminately, a powerful and unguided lure." He shot a quick appreciative glance at Doumeki. "Or at least it did." The bent gold cage glittered in the weak sunlight as it turned. "It's luck alone that no greater harm was done." There was a grim note in his voice. He glanced at Lady Nettleton, suddenly urgent. "Was it a gift?"

The lady had been staring at Kimihiro with an unreadable expression. "No." Her eyes remained fixed on him. "I bought it just over a month ago." She gave him a reproving look. "I don't wear gifts unless I know their provenance."

Kimihiro regarded her gravely. "That's wise of you." He lifted the hat pin slightly. "Would you be able to tell be where you bought it?"

Lady Nettleton's grey eyes flicked down to the pin he held and back to his face. "An antique shop in the Northern Quarter. It's on the corner of Sorano and Morishita."

Kimihiro's eyes flickered. "I'm familiar with it. Thank you, Lady Nettleton." He held out the broken pin. "There's no harm in it now."

The lady looked at him for a moment then accepted the mangled pin. She looked at it and the hat she held in her other hand. "Tatsuya's told me about you, Lord Watanuki." Her voice was measured. "That you are not simply what you are made out to be." She looked him over head to toe. "I have to agree."

Her gaze turned to him. "You owe me a new pin, Your Highness."

"Devnet." Lord Tatsuya had been keeping quiet but now gave her a warning look. "This meeting was my idea – you can send me the bill."

"Then you can get me a new hat as well." A sudden devilish light sparked in her eyes, belying her solemn face. "You can help me pick one out after lunch." The lord looked like he wanted to protest but she cut him off. "It will give you time to tell me about your next rally." She glanced at Kimihiro again. "I'm suddenly thinking of attending."

Lord Tatsuya blinked. He glanced at Doumeki and then the other people on the street around them. Most were walking around them but a few people who had been following the unfolding drama were still watching them. The lord lowered his voice. "That was something I wanted to discuss with you, Your Highness." He hesitated. "I was wondering whether you had considered my latest petition."

For reinstating the festivals. Doumeki studied the other man. He had read through it carefully several times. There were a surprising number of signatures attached to the document. Some of the names had been familiar – known supporters of the Southern Ward – but there were a number that hadn't been. The list was longer than the last one that Lord Tatsuya had sent. He had clearly been busy in the intervening time. Doumeki wouldn't be surprised if the lord had originally been intending to use his visit to Kimihiro to bring up the subject in hopes that word of their association hadn't been exaggerated.

"I have considered it." Doumeki chose his words carefully. "But I'd like to talk to you further before making any final arrangements."

Lord Tatsuya had gone still at his words, eyes were wide in surprise. "Your-" He stopped to clear his throat. He glanced at Lady Nettleton who nodded. "Your Highness. Perhaps you and Lord Watanuki would honour me by joining me for lunch."

They might have time. Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro in question. His gaze sharpened when he realized that Kimihiro wasn't paying attention any more. And hadn't been for a while. He was staring down the street again, face grim.

Doumeki blinked as he saw the tight lines of Kimihiro mouth and the anger in his eyes. Not just grim. Kimihiro was furious.

~x~X~x~


	86. Royal Summons V

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**ROYAL SUMMONS:**

**V**

Kimihiro breathed easier. The spirits that had been gathering were dispersing. The weaker ones had winked out as soon as Doumeki drew near and the others were quickly drawing back. Kurayami shrank back into the shadows. The black cat streaked off back down the street, escaping the tide of yurei which were returning to death sites from which they had been drawn.

Some were slow to leave, though. The shade of a man still stood behind Lady Nettleton. He was only a few feet away, his posture giving the impression of mild confusion. But Lady Nettleton gave no sign that she sensed his presence. Though Kimihiro noticed with interest that Lord Tatsuya glanced over his shoulder to check behind him. The spirit seemed to realize where he was when the lord's eyes fell on him. He drifted away, joining the invisible tide of spirits that were dispersing.

But not all of them were leaving. Some only retreated to a safe distance. His dead stalkers were still there. And their numbers had grown- Kimihiro froze as he spotted two spirits recognized. Instead of fleeing, they were now approaching.

It felt like he had swallowed a lump of ice and it had lodged over his heart. Lady Taihei and Lord Kimura. He had hardly believed the glimpse he had gotten of them before, believing that he had been mistaken, but their presence was undeniable now. They were both dressed in the clothes they had died in. Lord Kimura's tall frame was accentuated by a formal suit traced over with scarlet vines and leaves that wrapped around his torso and licked down his arms. Lady Taihei wore a matching scarlet dress embroidered with a caged-bird motif that was as exquisite as it was disturbing.

Neither of them were meant to be here. They should have been sealed: held down by stone, caged by water and tree roots.

They had noticed him staring. The lady was smirking at him knowingly, her arm tucked in the crook of Lord Kimura's elbow. Her partner placed a gloved hand over her slender fingers and raked a cool look over Kimihiro from head to toe. He didn't look impressed but the man had always been arrogant and assured of his own superiority. Kimihiro hadn't expected death to change that.

They strolled forward, looking as if they were in Highbridge rather than walking the street where they had been executed. They looked confident, almost contemptuous, but Kimihiro noticed that they were giving Doumeki a wide berth.

"Do you suppose he's the new Lord Watanuki?" Lady Taihei glanced at him sideways, her dark green eyes slowly tracing his form, lingering on the front of his jacket. A flicker of interest sparked in her derisive gaze.

_Cursed jade._ Kimihiro reflected that his grandfather's description fitted perfectly.

Lord Kimura stared at him head on, a direct regard that contrasted sharply with his companion's. "He looks like Hiraku." His cold dark eyes narrowed as he stared at Kimihiro's eyes. "But he's a mongrel."

Kimihiro felt his face go expressionless even as a spurt of rage exploded in his gut. That was what they wanted and he wasn't going to give them the satisfaction.

"A mongrel." Lady Taihei's lips parted as she tasted the words. A cruel smile crossed her lips as she studied him. "We know the proper way to deal with mongrels, don't we my lord?"

Kimihiro's fingers twitched around the head of his cane.

"We drown them." Her eyes were fixed on him, watching for a reaction. "Or wring their necks."

Lord Kimura had stopped walking. He was staring down at Lady Taihei. But instead of revulsion or shock, his face only showed approval.

She glanced up at her companion, smiling as she saw his admiring regard. Her eyes slid back to Kimihiro. "I prefer drowning." Her voice was as matter of fact, as if she was selecting silk over muslin. "Children hate to get water up their nose."

Kimihiro didn't dare move. The temptation to release Ryuu and destroy them was too great. If he moved, it would be to reach for his pocket watch. And he would likely use everything he had to ensure they were obliterated.

"It's a pity we're dead." Lady Taihei continued, sounding genuinely regretful. "We were stopped too soon." She suddenly glared at Kimihiro, hate heating her green eyes. "By degenerates like you!"

Lord Kimura lifted a hand and placed it on her nape. "We did our duty." His eyes were fixed on Kimihiro as he spoke, his hand slowly sliding forward until he was lightly gripping Lady Taihei's throat, his thumb resting against her jaw. They were large hands, strong. More than capable of wringing someone's neck. "And now the task lies with someone else." Disdain filled his eyes as he stared at Kimihiro. "I'm sure they'll be more than up to the task."

Lady Taihei had calmed at his touch, leaning into his shoulder. Her smile reappeared at his words. "You are so wise, my lord." One of her hands slid up his chest, resting on his lapel. "I'm sure it's only a matter of time." Her red lips stretched into a satisfied smile, her eyes flicking sideways. "He's already made a good start."

Kimihiro followed her gaze to the street-

The cracks were still there. Spreading wider.

It wasn't the hatpin.

Lady Taihei started laughing. They had been trying to distract him and it had worked.

Kimihiro glanced out at the cracks. He didn't have time for anything else-

He slid his hand into his pocket, fingers meeting chill metal. "Ryuu."

Lady Taihei's laughter cut off abruptly. Kimihiro caught a glimpse of her shocked, frightened face; the sudden step that Lord Kimura took backwards, and then his attention turned to the gold dragon twining around his wrist. "Go." He would deal with them later.

Ryuu twisted and dropped to the ground, running as it hit the pavement. The construct knew what its master needed and it had already found a direction. It was in its smallest form and darted between the feet of people walking down the street. They didn't even notice it but Kimihiro's eyes were fixed on the fast-moving gold streak, marking its path.

"Lord Wata-" Lord Tatsuya's surprised enquiry abruptly cut off as Kimihiro darted off after the rapidly-disappearing construct. He wasn't worried about appearances at the moment. The cracks spreading across the street were his main concern.

Sensing its master following, Ryuu sped up and Kimihiro broke into a run to keep the construct in sight, his cane clenched tightly in one fist. It was difficult at this time of day. It was lunch time and there were dozens of people walking the street. His progress was a crooked turning trail rather than a straight line.

An elderly matron suddenly stopped on the path in front of him and Kimihiro swerved, nearly running into a couple walking near the edge of the street. The man drew his companion back and stumbled, one foot on the road. The woman let out a sharp cry as she pulled at his arm to help him back onto the path again.

"Hey!" The call was angry but Kimihiro was already several metres down the street and the distance between them was widening. The man's shout had people turning and jumping out of the way as they saw Kimihiro bearing down on them. It made it easier to follow the small gold blur that lead the way and without the risk of running into people, Kimihiro increased his speed once more, his coat flapping out behind him.

A second cut off shout sounded behind him.

Doumeki. No one else would follow him on such a mad run.

Kimihiro didn't have time to stop and explain. He could feel them. A dark branching, a creeping movement that itched along his nerves now that he was focusing on it. It increased with every step but Kimihiro resisted the urge to look, focused on the path Ryuu was running in front of him.

Ryuu suddenly cut down a side street. Kimihiro reached out and took hold of the ornate black iron railing marking the edge of the footpath. The cold metal cut into his palm as he skidded around the corner, barely missing two young women walking down the street. They jumped aside and stared after him as Kimihiro started running down the abandoned alley.

Ryuu ran down the narrow street, leaping over small pot holes, dodging stray items and piles of refuse. A thin gold line, the construct was easy to see against the dark cobbles.

As was the dark shadow that suddenly stood to block their path.

Ryuu didn't even stop. Between one step and the next, the construct suddenly grew, reaching the size of a small dog.

Kimihiro stumbled at the sharp draw of power, flinging out his arms to keep his balance, but kept moving. He was following Ryuu's lead in this and there wasn't time to stop.

The dragon rushed forward and swiped at the spectre that blocked their way, ripping its form to shreds. The human silhouette shattered, breaking apart into thin ribbons that spiralled out into the air. Ryuu simply kept running, shrinking as it left the ruined spectre behind.

Kimihiro raised an arm in front of his face as he ran into the remnants of the spectre. They were like heavy mist, moist and clinging to his arm and shoulders, but he broke through it easily without anything more than a faint queasiness. His shoes were suddenly loud on the cobbles again.

Too loud.

He glanced quickly aside to see Doumeki had caught up and was pacing him a few steps behind. He might as well have been out for a stroll for all the effort he showed.

Kimihiro turned back ahead, suddenly annoyed.

All feelings of irritation fled when they burst out of the alley and Ryuu suddenly turned down a new street. Having seen for himself, Kimihiro already knew where the construct was heading. His grip tightened around his cane and he burst into a sprint.

A wooden saw-horse blocked his path but Kimihiro simply set a hand on its crossbar and vaulted over it, bones jolting as he landed hard on the uneven ground on the other side.

One of the work men turned around, shovel in hand, his eyes widening. "You can't-" He moved to intercept him but Kimihiro had the advantage of momentum and slipped past him. Whether Doumeki would be as lucky, Kimihiro didn't wait to find out.

Ryuu had already crossed the worksite, eliciting startled exclamations as it dodged workers. The dragon darted through the shovels biting into the earth and stopped at the monument they were digging around, wrapping large stone slab with the coils of its body.

Kimihiro recognised it immediately. It was a dosojin. One of the dosojin Haruka had erected to strengthen the roads.

One of the bolder workers, a sturdy fellow with a thick beard, poked his shovel at the construct. Only to recoil as Ryuu rose up with an angry hiss, jaws gaping open to reveal its teeth.

"I wouldn't do that if I was you." Kimihiro's voice sounded tight, the words squeezed out in an effort not to reveal his lack of breath. He wasn't stopped as he approached, probably because of Doumeki's grim presence at his side. Kimihiro glanced at him sidelong. There hadn't been any protest from the man who had tried to stop him and a glance at Doumeki showed why.

Doumeki was angry. It showed in the way he walked, the sharp glances he flicked over everything and everyone. The workers had picked up on his mood and there was an exchange of glances, a surreptitious planting of shovels.

Kimihiro made for the dosojin. Ryuu was holding it, acting as a conduit between the stone and the ground where the men had been digging it up. But he could feel the weak painful echo of the effort in his chest. It wasn't enough-

The bearded man held out a hand to block his way. "Your lordship." The expression on his face was wary but his eyes were firm. "You can't-"

"Let him pass." Doumeki's voice snapped with authority. The worker's gaze shifted to him and slowly his arm lowered.

Kimihiro didn't waste any time. He walked up to the dosojin, opening his sight to its fullest extent for a few seconds. Pain shot through his right eye, making it water fiercely. But he could still see the lines radiating from the dosojin, spreading out into the street. They were uneven, one so weak that it was in danger of snapping.

Ryuu moved. Sliding further around the large stone as its body lengthened. All four legs set on the ground, claws digging deep into the gravelly soil. The lines evened somewhat, the weak line thickening a fraction.

There was a shifting of gravel underfoot as someone moved uneasily. "Your Lordship." It was the bearded man. He seemed to have taken on the task of speaking with them. He must have been the foreman. "I have orders to be finished by the end of the day." His protests about random lords coming to invade his work site were unspoken but the implication was clear.

A glance showed Doumeki standing motionless, his eyes boring into them. "I didn't receive any permits."

Kimihiro studied the lines, uncomfortably aware of the heavy silence. Doumeki was a tense presence behind him, a branch ready to snap.

"Your Highness." The foreman's voice was slightly shaky. "We have a royal writ."

Kimihiro froze. It was what he had feared - a clash between Crown and Keeper.

Ryuu twitched, just enough to bring him back the problem at hand.

He couldn't just stand here. Kimihiro mentally shook himself and reached out to the smooth surface, hesitating briefly before pressing his hand firmly to its surface.

Nothing.

Kimihiro didn't know what was worse: the disappointment or what Haruka's absence meant.

~x~X~x~

A royal writ.

Doumeki's right fist was clenched so hard his fingers were starting to lose circulation. His mother had no jurisdiction here. She governed the Central Circle. The Southern Quarter was _his_.

The road workers were eyeing him nervously. Their foreman had the look of a man caught between a rock and a hard place. Not at all happy to be there.

His eyes flicked to Kimihiro. He was standing next to the dosojin, one hand laid on top of it. Ryuu had grown larger and with the way the dragon was wrapped around the dosojin, the construct looked like an ornate support for the large stone.

He turned back to the workers. "That stone was laid by my predecessor." Doumeki tried to keep the anger out of his voice.

A slightly sickened look slid across the foreman's face. The other men were turning to regard the stone and the dragon wrapped around it. There were looks of dread on their faces.

"I'll be taking this matter up with Her Majesty." His mother had gone too far. If she wanted a private war, then she had gotten one. He fixed the foreman with hard stare. "What other work is there?" It wasn't likely to be only this.

"There's more scheduled for tomorrow." The man looked uncomfortable. "Work on the main roads is meant to start in a month."

A month. It matched what he had heard at court. But there had been nothing about work _within_ the Quarters. "Unless you receive confirmation from the Southern Ward, nothing is to be done." Until he found out what was going on.

The man nodded and Doumeki strode past him, walking over to the dosojin. The gold dragon turned its head to regard him but otherwise didn't move, claws dug deep into the earth. Kimihiro didn't even register his presence. His eyes were closed, his brow furrowed, a thin silver line starting to slowly trace down his right cheek.

Doumeki frowned, disturbed. He reached out, hand stopping just short of Kimihiro's face. "Oi." It was said softly.

Kimihiro's eyes snapped open, pupils visibly shrinking. He blinked at Doumeki. "What-"

Doumeki slowly lowered his hand. "Are you alright?"

Blue eyes widened then filled with realization. Kimihiro lifted his hand and wiped at his right eye. "It waters sometimes." His voice was brisk to hide his embarrassment.

Doumeki watched him, his hand hanging limp at his side. The explanation didn't make him feel any better. The sight of Kimihiro like that upset him.

"We're going to have to reset it." Kimihiro was looking out at the street. He glanced back to Doumeki. "Your grandfather erected it to bolster the channelling effect of the road."

Doumeki frowned. It hadn't been the only one. Doumeki had read through the Southern Ward's accounts when he had been instated as Keeper. But it was only recently, when he had gone back to re-read them, that Doumeki had realized what his grandfather had been doing in the last few years. They were filled with entries of rites performed to erect dosojin, strengthen the gates and purify various shrines. Haruka had been strengthening the points of the Southern Quarter, making the Southern Ward as secure as he could.

As if he knew what was coming.

Knowing his grandfather, he probably had. Doumeki would have preferred to have been given some guidance. But Haruka hadn't told anyone what he had seen. Not even his grandson. Unless he counted the cryptic advisements he received in his dreams.

But Haruka _had_ left him Kimihiro. From what little Kimihiro had said, Doumeki had come to the conclusion that his grandfather was partly responsible for him being alive. It was enough to forgive Haruka for his secretive ways.

Doumeki glanced at the dosojin. The marker was a thick weathered slab of stone, the exposed part coming up to waist height. Its colour was dark green, almost black, indicating that it hadn't been quarried locally. The stone was unadorned and he could almost forgive the road workers for not recognising it for what it was. Almost.

From what he could see past the body of the dragon wrapped around it, the work crew had only started to dig it out. It was still solidly embedded in the soil, though exposed on one side. Doumeki sorted through the rites he knew, searching for one that fitted the situation. While there was desecration, the physical damage seemed minimal- "Would a rededication work?"

Usually it took several days preparation but he could still manage a shortened rite. In usual circumstances, it would have entailed at least three days of saikai. But he'd been a state of abstinence for so long in other areas that he figured it made up for it.

Doumeki made a mental note to explore alternative paths of saikai for rites and festivals in particular. He didn't want to remain celibate for long periods. The last thing he wanted was his duties interfering with what he could do with Kimihiro.

"No." Kimihiro looked anxious. Not quite the expression he'd been wearing if Kimihiro knew what he was thinking, Doumeki reflected.

Kimihiro hesitated. "The form of the rite is important but in this case, the power a Keeper has is the most crucial factor." He glanced at the stone slab, the construct wrapped around its base. "It has to be rejoined firmly to the road and reconnected with the other dosojin within the network." There was a slightly strained note in his voice.

Doumeki looked at Kimihiro more closely. He looked slightly paler and his hand was clenched tightly around his cane. Kimihiro must have been doing something. Doumeki glanced at the construct again, noting this time how the dragon had claws embedded deeply into the soil where the slab had been most exposed. That was why Kimihiro's haste had ceased - he was holding the dosojin in place. But it wasn't clear how long he could.

Doumeki wasn't going to find out. He might not know how to fix the dosojin but Kimihiro could guide him.

~x~X~x~

LOL. I love the way Doumeki thinks XD


	87. Royal Summons VI

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**ROYAL SUMMONS**

**VI**

"It's a dragon!" The exclamation cut through the murmur of voices that Kimihiro had been barely registering for the last few minutes.

He turned to the source. A crowd was gathering. A messenger boy was clutching to one of the saw horses, eyes wide with awe as he stared at Ryuu. A well-dressed couple, merchant class by their clothes, stood staring with much less delight than the boy. The young woman was clutching onto her beau's arm, standing slightly behind him as if seeking protection. Two street sweepers stood further away, next to an older man who was staring at the dosojin with an expression which was a cross between anger and concern. The glances he gave the workmen, who were looking uneasy under the harsh gaze, gave no doubt as to where his anger was directed.

Ryuu wasn't particularly inconspicuous. And the crowd itself was drawing attention. Even as Kimihiro watched, people on the other side of the street were staring, some of them already making their way across the narrow road for a better look.

Kimihiro surveyed the growing crowd uneasily. It wasn't wise for Doumeki to be seen here like this. Not with him. But Doumeki didn't seem worried. He stared at the crowd with all the animation of a statue.

Kimihiro glanced back at Ryuu who was still linking the dosojin to the road. There was nothing circumspect about this. But they didn't have much choice at this point. It didn't stop the unease he felt at being exposed, though. The last time he had used his power in public hadn't ended well -

"You!"

The word made Kimihiro jump. For a moment he thought the abrupt address had been directed at him. He turned to see a tall man approaching. Someone wearing the distinct black winter coat of a warden. A black-gloved hand reached out and grabbed the collar of the messenger boy, who had been starting to wriggle past the wooden barrier to get a closer look. "This is a construction zone not a playground." The words were deep, filled with anger. The warden glared at the boy, who was standing frozen, then abruptly released his grip and vaulted over the barrier.

The workers glanced at each other but wisely didn't protest the second invasion of their work site.

Kimihiro paid them little mind, focused on the approaching warden. He'd been wrong, this wasn't a man-

The warden took in the situation with a glance: Doumeki's angry stance, the construct wrapped around the dosojin. Her mouth tightened at the sight of the partially uncovered monument and her eyes flicked to Kimihiro's face for a moment before returning to Doumeki. "Your Highness." She stopped a few steps away, giving a deep bow of her head. Her gaze turned to Kimihiro and she gave another nod, nearly as deep as the first. "Your Lordship."

She knew who he was. Kimihiro could see it in her eyes. But she didn't show any contempt or disdain, only respect. Kimihiro stared at her. It wasn't the reaction he was used to. She wasn't a normal warden.

Doumeki had obviously come to the same conclusion. "I don't know you." The remark was made blunter by the remnants of anger in his voice.

The warden's eyes narrowed slightly, but otherwise she showed no offence. "I'm Kotone Ikarashi, Your Highness. The Chief Warden-" her mouth quirked, "-has just recalled me to duty."

Doumeki was silent for moment, simply studying the woman in front of him. "Recalled?"

Kotone smiled faintly. "When Her Majesty replaced us, we considered it a temporary suspension."

It would make her one of the wardens who were under Haruka's supervision. Kimihiro looked at her more closely. It was there, faint but present. Power tightly held. Not enough to classify her as a practitioner but enough to define her as more than ordinary.

Her eyes suddenly slid sideways, catching his. She studied him for a moment and then her gaze turned back to Doumeki. "Lord Woodrow has recalled everyone who is still fit for duty."

Doumeki was frowning. It didn't look like his cousin had informed Doumeki of his intentions. From what he'd seen of Lord Woodrow, Kimihiro wasn't surprised that he was acting on his own.

Kotone seemed to have realised the situation. She expanded her explanation. "Only a few have answered the call so far. I haven't been designated a partner yet."

Doumeki's frown deepened. "Then why are you here?" His eyes were fixed on the crossed silver arrows embroidered on her left shoulder and it wasn't a particularly happy look. There was a hint of possible censure to come if the answer wasn't satisfactory. Doumeki didn't seem pleased to be out of the loop.

"I was passing through when I felt the road starting to weaken." Her gaze slid to the dosojin. "This sort of thing isn't my specialty but I thought it was worth a try." Doumeki's frown lightened somewhat at that but Kimihiro was suddenly confronted by her gaze, curiously pale brown eyes meeting his in a disconcertingly forward stare. "Consider me at your disposal."

Kimihiro stared at her, taken aback. Not certain whether she had meant that in the way he had heard it. But there was no mistake. The warden didn't look aware from his questioning stare. She meant it.

But she should have been giving that loyalty to Doumeki, not him-

"What _is_ your specialty?" Doumeki's frown was still there. He looked from Kotone to him and back again, eyes narrowing.

"Gateways, Your Grace." Kotone switched titles to the more familiar address of a vassal. She had picked up on Kimihiro's discomfort and correctly surmised its cause. "Your predecessor assigned me to assist at Kugimon." She gave Doumeki a small bow. "I'm happy to report that there have been no major disturbances. There have been no attempts to enter the city."

Had Haruka known that his wardens would be dismissed after his death? It looked like it was the case. Kugimon was the Southern Quarter's closest shrine to the Southeast Gate. If Kotone had been given the task to watch the gateway, Kimihiro doubted she was the only one assigned a position in the Quarter. It suddenly occurred to him that might be why the wardens who had been suspended hadn't protested as vigorously as expected. It would have made it easier for them to carry out any instructions Haruka had given.

"Do you know if Daiki still lives in the Southern Quarter?" He had been one of Haruka's most trusted wardens, gifted in erected minor wards to contain minor elementals. Kimihiro glanced at Kotone and received a small, nearly imperceptible nod.

Confirmation.

Daiki had kept a low profile, a quiet unremarkable man who passed unnoticed most of the time. If Kotone knew him, it was only because Daiki had approached her. Kimihiro glanced at Doumeki, who was staring at them both narrowly. "You might want to talk to each of your returning wardens personally, Your Grace." It was a message for Kotone as much as Doumeki. If she hadn't approached Doumeki before now, she must have had doubts. "I'm sure they'll serve you as well as I do."

Doumeki stared at him at that. Even more suspicious and with questions building in his eyes.

There a sudden pull that had his attention turning back to Ryuu. The construct hadn't moved but it was now staring at them. The thin line hadn't broken but it hadn't been strengthened, either. Now wasn't the time for talking.

"We'll need a priest." He gave Doumeki a look - _I'll tell you later_ - which he accepted less than gracefully. Kimihiro could almost hear his disgruntled 'Hn'. "His Grace should be able to reconnect the dosojin back into the network." He ignored Doumeki's startled look - no doubt Doumeki had thought _he_ would be the one to do it - and kept talking. "But the site needs to be purified as well." And he'd need Doumeki to concentrate on the dosojin. It was better to have someone else shouldering that part. There was also the added benefit of a distraction for the crowd. "Rikuto, head priest at Kaijo shrine would do." Kimihiro had met the man when he was assistant priest. What he lacked in power, he made up for in enthusiasm. He glanced at Doumeki.

Doumeki nodded. He flicked a glance at Kotone. "See to it."

Kotone nodded sharply in acknowledgement. "Your Grace." She walked back to the barrier in several quick long strides. "Boy!" The messenger boy jumped and froze. "Run to Kaijo shrine as quickly as you can and fetch Kannushi Rikuto. Tell him he has to perform a purification rite." Her eyes fell on the satchel he carried. "I'll give you a note from the Warden's Office to explain why you neglected your duties." There was a wry note in her voice. She suddenly pinned him with a hard stare. "What's your message?"

The boy straightened to attention, hands falling to his sides as he released the death grip he'd taken on the bag slung over his shoulder. "Fetch Kannushi Rikuto from Kaijo for a purification rite."

Kotone nodded. "Good. Run fast."

The boy set off at a sprint.

Kimihiro breathed a little easier around the tightness in his chest. It wouldn't be much longer. Kaijo wasn't too far away and once the boy spilled his tale, Rikuto would come as fast as he could. It probably wouldn't take more than fifteen minutes. Ryuu could hold the dosojin that long - it wasn't outside the limits Kimihiro had been working to push in the last few months. He winced as there was a slight fluctuation in the power Ryuu was draining from him. It wasn't exactly comfortable, though.

A hand touched his arm. Doumeki. "What do I need to do?"

For a moment Kimihiro just stared at him. There was no doubt on Doumeki's face, not even a trace of hesitation. He didn't know what had to be done but he was fully prepared to do whatever he had to. The amount of trust that showed was almost daunting.

Kimihiro glanced back at the dosojin. "It's part of the grid that protects the city but its priority are the roads," he started in a low voice. "The area the road divides has a history of supernatural incidents." And continued to do so. "The dosojin along its length are meant to strengthen the power of the road, providing the power to keep certain things in check."

Doumeki glanced at the large slab then back to his face. "What sorts of things?"

The image of widening cracks filled his mind. "Elementals mostly. But some of the older spirits as well. The roads also act to partition the city - they're barriers to prevent the movement of hostile spirits." Primarily any incursion that might break through the wards.

From the thoughtful look on Doumeki's face, the idea hadn't escaped him.

"It would take several days to set a dosojin in a road." As Keeper, Doumeki knew the basic forms. "But we don't have that time." And it might not have been a wise course of action. It was _Haruka's_ dosojin and Kimihiro was reluctant to interfere with it anymore than he had to. "We'll have to strengthen its connections to the other dosojin." Theoretically it could work. Of course there was the problem of providing the power to keep the dosojin at a strength close to its former levels. But he'd have to deal with that somehow.

A strong source of power. Usually it was the Keeper who channelled a piece of their power into it. It should have still been there, a slow burn within the heart of the cold stone. But it wasn't. And Kimihiro had no idea why. The unearthing of the dosojin alone shouldn't have done it.

"If we send enough power through the dosojin, it should momentarily strengthen the connections and the existing power in the network should do the rest." It had worked in the past on one other occasion. Granted, that had been several centuries ago with a fully fledged Keeper who had been trained. Doumeki didn't quite fit into that category.

Doumeki was frowning slightly. "Isn't that what you're doing now?"

Kimihiro was suddenly aware of the ache in his chest. "I'm just preventing it from deteriorating further. I'm not a Keeper so that's all I can do." If things had been different he might have done more, but Kimihiro had gotten used to his limitations.

Doumeki's full attention turned to him at those words. But if he was going to say anything, he was interrupted before he could get the chance.

"Your Grace!" Kotone had stayed near the barrier of saw-horses to give them some privacy. She pointed the street when she saw that she had their attention.

The crowd had grown, Kimihiro saw with some dismay. The sight of all the people who had gathered beyond the area was such a shock that it took him a moment to see what the warden had spotted.

It was the messenger boy running back. And behind him, dressed in the formal regalia of head priest, followed Rikuto. He hadn't changed much. All dignity was thrown to the wind in the favour of haste.

Word had spread through the crowd and as the sight of the running priest registered, people began moving, clearing a corridor to the site. Rikuto didn't pause but jogged down the cleared space and vaulted over the barrier. He nimbly navigated the uneven worked ground and came to a halt in front of Doumeki. He bowed deeply. "Your Grace." He nodded to Kimihiro, "Your Lordship." It was somewhat breathless. "I was on my way to a consecration when I received your message. I came as fast as I could."

Their luck was holding. Kimihiro only hoped that it continued to do so.

Doumeki nodded, an almost curt gesture. "I-"

"Hey!" Rikuto's appearance had started a stir among the crowd. The sight of a priest running in full regalia had been alarming and people were giving voice to their unease. One man suddenly leaned forward over the barricade. "Hey! What's going on?"

A few of the people around him turned to stare and his companion tried to shut him up. "Do you want to get yourself in trouble? It's none of our business."

"No." It was the man who had been watching from the start, glaring at the road workers. "Most of us live around here and we have a right to know."

That set up more outbursts, some in favour and some against.

"-if His Highness is here, it must be serious-"

"-who's that man-"

"-no matter how you look at it, that's a _dragon_-"

Rikuto glanced at the dosojin and then to Doumeki. "Your Grace?"

Doumeki looked at the priest for a moment and then at the crowd which was getting more unsettled by the minute. He started walking towards the barrier.

Kimihiro stopped himself from reaching out and grabbing his arm, fisting his hand instead. Doumeki was the authority in this situation. And he was of greater rank. Kimihiro couldn't be seen acting in the familiar way he had been in private.

Doumeki stopped a few steps away from the barrier and just stood there. Arguments faltered then stopped altogether as people realized who stood before them. Soon no one was talking. Only the sound of a passing horse and cart, the hollow clops strangely loud on the cobbles, broke the silence.

"One of the dosojin erected by my predecessor has been mistakenly disturbed." Doumeki's words were quiet but clear in the silence. His voice suddenly became hard. "Neither I or Her Majesty has approved any work within the Southern Quarter."

The workers were suddenly looking anxious once more. A few had outright fear on their faces. And they should have been to judge by the looks certain members of the crowd were giving them. Traditionally there was a certain pride in belonging to a quarter in the capital and unwarranted interference wasn't looked on favourably.

"The dosojin must be purified and returned to its former state." Doumeki continued in less foreboding tones. "Kannushi Rikuto of Kaijo shrine and Lord Watanuki are assisting me in that matter."

Kimihiro suddenly found himself the focus of stares from the people gathered behind the barrier. It took effort not to shrink away from the attention. Did Doumeki really have to say that? But he did, Kimihiro realized. It would have been worse for Doumeki to look like he was hiding who his companion was. But that didn't make Kimihiro any happier about the situation. Doumeki was already in trouble with his mother. When this incident reached her ears, Kimihiro doubted that the queen would be any happier.

Doumeki glanced at the workers for the first time. "I have confidence that this won't happen again." And with that he turned and walked back towards the dosojin. He looked at Rikuto. "The site needs to be purified. Use the most elaborate form."

The priest nodded. "I'll leave the rest to you." He bowed to Doumeki again and nodded to Kimihiro before walking back to the barrier once more. The messenger boy pulled a package from his satchel - Kimihiro recognised the distinctive bag priests used to carry ritual objects - and handed it to the priest. Rikuto accepted it and started pulling out various items. Kotone glanced at Doumeki and then moved to help the priest when Doumeki nodded.

Kimihiro glanced at him, feeling a slightly concerned. He hadn't realized how angry Doumeki was but his short address to the crowd had corrected that. In anyone else, it would be called seething but with Doumeki it was like bubbling water in sealed vessel, one likely to explode any minute- It wasn't exactly in the right frame of mind to attempt any ritual let alone one he hadn't done before. "You're going to have to calm down if this going to work." His gaze was on the dosojin but he watched Doumeki from the corner of his eye.

Doumeki's gaze snapped to him. For a moment Kimihiro thought he was going to say something cutting but then he drew in a visible breath. His face smoothed of all emotion and some of the tension ran out of him.

Better.

Kimihiro glanced over at Rikuto. The priest had his hiogi (1) in one hand, the fan opened to its full extent, and a branch of sakaki (2) in the other. The hiogi was made of narrow strips of hinoki (3), the sacred tree of fire. It represented the fiery element even as the fan itself represented wind. The branch of sakaki represented earth and water as Rikuto used it to sprinkled the latter over the site to purify the area. Rikuto was making enough of a show to distract the crowd, giving them the chance to attend to the dosojin.

Kimihiro's gaze turned Doumeki. He was still staring at the dosojin. "You have to find the anchors. Since you can't see it, you'll have to locate it by feel." An easy task for someone like Haruka who not only knew what they were doing but had done it several times in the past. Kimihiro had never done it himself - it was task for a Keeper not someone like himself - and he could only guide Doumeki through instinct and what he could see. Hopefully it would be enough.

Doumeki glanced at him once, sidelong. And then he reached out and placed his hand firmly on the dosojin. He stared at it for a moment and then let out a deep breath, his eyes sliding shut.

Kimihiro watched Doumeki's face carefully, trying to see any reaction. "Can you feel it?" He kept his voice low, barely a murmur, so that he wouldn't disturb Doumeki's concentration. "With what you've practised you should be able to sense the power running through the dosojin." That was the easy bit.

Doumeki was frowning slightly, his hand resting still on top of the large stone's uppermost surface. His eyebrows lowered slightly, deepening the look of concentration on his face. "I can feel it." His lips thinned. "It feels unbalanced."

A flash of relief shot through Kimihiro. Maybe this wouldn't be so hard, after all. Not if Doumeki was able to sense that much. It boded well for what came next. "Can you tell me how?"

Doumeki was silent for a long moment. Then one of his fingers rose slightly before returning to the stone in a gentle tap. "Here. It isn't empty-" his frown deepened "-but its draining away on one side."

He _had_ been practising. It was more than Kimihiro had been able to sense. He stared at the dosojin, opening his sight wider as he concentrated on the three lines that were still strong. They _did_ look slightly thicker than they should have. Doumeki might be right - it could be the internal balance of the dosojin had shifted so the flow of power was no longer evenly distributed.

That was a relief in a way. It meant that his first impression had been wrong. It wasn't an absence of power as much as a flow problem. All they had to do was correct it. And in this case, a blast of power flooding through the channels would probably even the flow. It wasn't elegant or even neat but it meant that it would be easier for Doumeki.

Doumeki had channelled power through his cane when he had freed the monoke in Radford's office. It had been instinctual rather than deliberate but it had still been effective. And what had happened once could repeat itself. He didn't need Doumeki to know what he was doing so much as trigger the instinctive response again. But it was a chance for Doumeki to try to do something consciously.

"The dosojin sends out power in four directions like a compass." There were several smaller ones, like spokes in a wheel, but it was the main four that were important. The others would reset as soon as the main four were back in balance. "You have to concentrate on feeling the power within you." He spoke slowly, keeping his eyes on Doumeki's face. "It should be similar to what you can feel in the dosojin."

Doumeki was silent for a long moment. But suddenly his eyes opened. He gave Kimihiro a frustrated look. "I can't feel anything."

Kimihiro frowned. He hadn't expected that. He couldn't sense or see Doumeki usually but he'd thought that Doumeki would be able to at least sense part of what lay inside himself. He'd been able to feel the power that leaked from Kimihiro's eye-

It gave him an idea. Kimihiro pulled a snail pick from his sleeve and held in his hand, in sight of Doumeki but hidden from the crowd by his body. With the power he was feeding Ryuu it was difficult but he managed to channel a thread of power into the length of silver. And keep it flowing into the thin metal vessel. "Just like this." He hesitated. But it might help. "See if you can feel it."

Doumeki's fingers wrapped around his wrist, disconcertingly warm. His pale eyes widened at the contact and he stared down at Kimihiro's arm as if he had never seen it before.

"Power naturally travels through the body. If you're in contact with an object or being, you can channel that power into it." That was the basics, though somewhat simplified. "Once you locate the source of the power," Kimihiro lightly tapped his chest with the head of his cane, "You simply think of where you want it to go. It's like moving your arm." For someone who'd never had arms before. "It's a matter of will." He stopped the flow of power and then started it up again in demonstration. It took more concentration the second time and he was aware of the growing ache in his eye and chest. "It should be the same for you."

Doumeki released his grip, his fingers sliding slowly over Kimihiro's skin. He looked at his own hand for a moment before returning it to the dosojin, setting his hand lightly but firmly against its surface.

At first nothing happened. But then Kimihiro started to feel it. A faint sensation, a thin line of pain cutting through his chest. Doumeki's power moving through his own, through Ryuu. It felt strange.

Doumeki frowned and it suddenly strengthened, like a stiletto had twisted in his chest, widening its entrance wound. For a moment the trickle of power flowed as Doumeki studied the stone slab under his hand.

And then suddenly power snaked down Doumeki's arm and slammed into the stone slab, blasting the dosojin. Almost instantly the lines blazed. Lines of light like harnessed lightening shot out from the stone as the influx of power overloaded the dosojin and spilled into the network.

Ryuu was moving, uncoiling from the dosojin like it was on fire. The dragon was twisting out of the way even as the lines blazed to life. But not quite fast enough. The clawed fist it ripped free from the earth was clipped by the re-powered line.

For a split second, Kimihiro experienced the pain as Doumeki's power hit the construct and rebounded on him. It was like being kicked in the chest by a mule. Except the shock was accompanied with shooting lines of pain that radiated outward, burning along his nerves.

But then the sensation broke off as Ryuu jerked away. The construct began to shrink and the pressure slowly faltered as the draw of power lessened. Barely a foot in length, the dragon darted across the disturbed ground and ran up one of Kimihiro's legs to reach his arm.

It wasn't anchoring the dosojin anymore but it didn't need to. That blast of power had done more than fix the imbalance; all four main lines were stronger than they'd been before. If there was a problem with any other dosojin in the vicinity they would have been fixed, too.

It was a good thing that Rikuto's rite had shielded some of the sudden burst of power, Kimihiro reflected as Doumeki lifted his hand from the dosojin with a look of surprise. Doumeki had done the equivalent of lighting a supernatural bonfire. If Rikuto hadn't been there he would have blasted any unfortunate spirit nearby into oblivion.

As it was, there was no hiding the presence of an exorcist in the city anymore.

~x~X~x~

1) A plain fan which forms part of the formal attire of a Shinto priest. Priestesses have painted fans which are known as akomiogi.  
2) The sacred tree which is used for a variety of purposes in Shinto ritual. Usually referring to _Cleyera ochnacea_.  
3) A tree sacred for its use in building Shinto shrines. _Chaneaecypaius obtusa_ - the hinoki cyprus. It's known as the fire cyprus and thus my use here ;)

~x~X~x~


	88. Royal Summons VII

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**ROYAL SUMMONS**

**VII**

One moment he was concentrating on the rough stone under his palm and the next something suddenly settled into place. A sudden stream of warmth was flowing down his arm and Ryuu was jerking away from the dosojin, fleeing the stone like it burned and moving so fast it left a spray of dirt behind it.

It wasn't like the painful burn of Lady Nettleton's hatpin. It wasn't painful at all. If anything, it was exhilarating, a flood of warmth that ran through him in an energizing tide. Kimihiro usually looked worse after he had used his power but Doumeki wasn't feeling any ill effects. If anything, he felt better than he had before. Doumeki eyed the dosojin as he lifted his hand from its surface. As far as he could tell it was better as well.

He glanced at Kimihiro. He was standing awkwardly, leaning to one side and supporting his weight on his cane. Ryuu was sitting on his shoulders, small once more, claws griping onto Kimihiro's coat. The construct was staring at him, an unfathomable look in its small black eyes.

Doumeki moved away from the dosojin, taking a step closer to Kimihiro. "Did it work?" He'd done something but he wasn't sure if it was enough.

Kimihiro looked at him and let out a breath that was a shaky laugh. "It did." He straightened, turning more fully to face him. Dark blue eyes met his in a frank stare, Kimihiro's mouth twitching up in a lop-sided smile. "I think you reset every dosojin along the road."

Doumeki blinked and looked at his hand. It still tingled slightly but that was all that remained of the sudden warmth that had shot through it. He looked back at the dosojin. It looked exactly as it had before. But it wasn't the nagging imbalance it had been. It now faded back into the street, an unremarkable stone.

Rikuto was still flicking water over the open earth, moving his fan in an intricate path through the air with his other hand. Most of the people gathered behind the wooden sawhorses had their attention on the priest in front of them rather than Kimihiro and him.

Kimihiro's eyes were on the priest as well. "The road should be fine now." He glanced at Doumeki. "How are you feeling?" The question was almost casual but his dark eyes were filled with concern.

Surprise was followed by pleasure. "Fine." Doumeki watched as the last of the worry left Kimihiro's eyes. He visibly relaxed; though he hadn't said as much in words Doumeki could see that he had been less confident of the outcome than he'd let on. Doumeki glanced at Ryuu, half-hoping for some clue as to why. The dragon was staring at him again. But this time it was in a more friendly curiosity. On impulse Doumeki reached up towards it.

The small dragon suddenly rose. It ran down Kimihiro's arm and jumped to Doumeki's hand. It sat there, titling its head to one side, staring up at him. For the first time, Doumeki was aware of how warm it was. The small body lying across his palm was almost hot, startlingly similar to the power he had felt running through Kimihiro's arm-

Kimihiro was staring at them, a look that was close to alarm crossing his face. "Ryuu." It was quiet but undeniably a command. The dragon immediately returned at the call, leaping to his outstretched hand and darting up Kimihiro's sleeve.

Doumeki stared at Kimihiro, still feeling the dragon's warmth across his palm. Something had just happened but he wasn't sure what. The way Kimihiro avoided his gaze told Doumeki that he wasn't going to get any answers, either.

Rikuto's voice suddenly rose and the fan he held snapped out one more time, frozen in place. The uneasy atmosphere on the site suddenly lifted, the spectators behind the barrier reassured by the completion of the rite. Even the workers, still standing to one side, looked less anxious.

The priest straightened and carefully handed the branch of sakaki to Kotone and tucked the hinogi in his belt. After a brief moment of consultation, priest and warden walked back towards the dosojin. "The rite is complete, Your Grace." Rikuto sounded pleased. He looked at the dosojin. "I'll supervise the clean up if you wish."

Kotone glanced at him, the sacred branch held carefully in her hands. "I'll stay to assist, Your Grace." Her eyes flicked briefly to Kimihiro and Doumeki felt the same flicker of annoyance he had felt before. He didn't like the way the warden kept looking towards Kimihiro, seeking his opinion, gauging his reaction. He knew it was because of the authority Kimihiro held in such matters but it still irked him.

But it was a good solution to the problem. The workers, cowed by the greater authority, would follow the priest's orders, especially when he was backed up by a warden. Doumeki nodded. "Report to the central office when you've finished here." It would be better if they left. He could tell that Kimihiro was uneasy being so exposed and with the dosojin restored there was no need for them to stay.

~x~X~x~

They left Rikuto and Kotone supervising the work crew as they repaired the damage they had done to the sidewalk. The priest approached the task with a brisk but friendly attitude that put the men at ease even as the warden's sharp gaze kept them biddable. Doumeki left them to it, satisfied that the site would be cleaned up by the end of the day.

One of the sawhorses was hastily pulled aside as they reached the barrier and the crowd of concerned locals drew back to let them pass. Awkward bows and curtseys were directed at Doumeki but he was aware of the darting stares that Kimihiro received. There was fear on some faces but most people appeared to be curious. And some of them more interested in Kimihiro's construct than its master. The dragon had remained tucked up Kimihiro's sleeve but a small head peered out from Kimihiro's cuff to stare at the crowd. The wide-eyed stares of two children who had squeezed through the crowd suggested that the construct had been seen.

Kimihiro trailed silently behind him. He was seemed oblivious of the stares but Doumeki saw the way his eyes moved over the crowd. His face was expressionless but his cane was grasped tightly in one gloved hand. Kimihiro was wary, almost as if he expected some sort of attack.

Doumeki wasn't as concerned. Any stories that grew out their actions today wouldn't hurt Kimihiro's reputation. He had been involved in restoring a dosojin. Whether someone followed the old ways or not, the monuments represented the quarter and Kimihiro had been seen protecting it. When word of that spread, it would provide a new and opposing view to counter the rumours that dogged him. Not that the lower classes seemed prone to take such a negative view of Kimihiro. The court was responsible for the most damaging gossip-

A couple on the edge of the crowd caught his eye. They had been followed. Lady Nettleton and Lord Tatsuya were now making their way towards them. Doumeki nodded to them as they drew closer and they walked silently until they had reached some distance from the crowd.

Lady Nettleton's previous suspicion had been replaced by determination. "So what Tatsuya has been telling me is true." Her eyes fell on Ryuu. The dragon had half-emerged from Kimihiro's sleeve, small claws gripping Kimihiro's gloved fingers. Her lips firmed and she met Kimihiro's gaze. "What can I do?"

Kimihiro blinked. "Do?"

Lady Nettleton stared at him with an almost exasperated look. "Lord Kimihiro, I'm not about to do nothing when the capital is at stake. I might not be able to do something like you-" her eyes fell on the gold dragon again "-but there must be something I can do."

"Information." Kimihiro might have reservations about taking up an offer of aid but he didn't. He ignored Kimihiro's sharp stare. "You can move through social circles we can't and listen for any information that can be useful from our cause." He met her gaze. "I'll need supporters I can trust."

Kimihiro had an alarmed look on his face now.

But Lady Nettleton nodded. "I can do that. And try to enlist others." Her eyes moved to her companion. "There are a few people who are interested, Tatsuya. I think some of the older families might listen to you with an introduction." A thoughtful expression crossed her face. "If you present it properly, the idea of festivals will catch on." She suddenly smiled, her mouth a grim little curve. "Everyone's so bored, they'll seize on the novelty."

Lord Tatsuya frowned. "I'd rather have serious support." He gave her a look. "Not bored nobles."

His companion raised an eyebrow. "Nonsense. Their brainless enthusiasm can be put to good use." Her mouth quirked slightly. "And the festivals would be good entertainment, wouldn't they? You'd receive genuine support for that." She suddenly turned serious. "You'll never sway enough people by simply appealing to their love of tradition, Tatsuya. You need to give them something they want, something they can benefit from."

She had a point. If they presented the festivals as an entertainment or business enterprise, they would likely win a wider base of support. It wouldn't convince the hardliners but it would make _their_ stance look more bigoted, less a question of politics than outdated policies. Modernization was all about profit and if profit could be made from the old ways then there was a place for them. A view that would be even more effective if those who stood to profit by it thought it had been their idea...

"If they had a chance to meet both you and Lord Watanuki, Your Highness," Lady Nettleton continued. "I am certain many will come."

Out of curiosity if nothing else. But those who would genuinely give their support wouldn't act unless he had given a clear indication of his intentions, either. He glanced at Kimihiro who looked horrified by the idea.

"If a meeting to discuss the future of the quarter in relation to traditional practices was being held, we would be certain to attend." Doumeki ignored the look Kimihiro shot him at that. Anger at his presumption was quickly replacing the horror of the prospect.

Lord Tatsuya was thinking hard. "It would take at least a few weeks." He glanced at Doumeki. "Some of the people you need to meet are out of the capital at the moment. It will take time for them to return."

Doumeki studied him thoughtfully. It looked like Lord Tatsuya hadn't restricted himself and his followers to petitions.

"Hold it at my estate." Lady Nettleton suggested. "I doubt your father would welcome so many supporters." It was a generous offer. It would label the lady and her family as supporters.

The ramifications hadn't escaped her companion. Lord Tatsuya looked like he wanted to protest. But he didn't. "I'll send word when I have news." He hesitated. "Would you still consider joining us for lunch?"

A glance suggested that Kimihiro had other plans. "Another time perhaps." He met the young lord's gaze. "You can make an appointment with my aide."

"Then I will take my leave." He bowed, Lady Nettleton sinking to a curtsey at his side. "Until next week, Your Highness."

Kimihiro was a silent for a moment, watching them walk away. But when he finally spoke, his voice was level. "I'd appreciate it if you would consult me before committing me to public meetings."

"You're the one who said it was too late to hide." Doumeki pointed out. Though if Kimihiro hadn't been so quiet and withdrawn Doumeki probably wouldn't have deliberately provoked him. He glanced at the gold dragon peering out of Kimihiro's sleeve. Despite the crowd, he hadn't dismissed the construct.

Doumeki looked at Kimihiro. His grimness hadn't entirely dissipated with the resetting of the dosojin. There was something else.

Kimihiro caught his gaze. "There's one more thing I have to deal with."

~x~X~x~

The cracks in the road had vanished. The resetting of the dosojin had been a success. The kage were once more imprisoned by the unbroken lines of the roads that kept them contained.

The spill of spirits on the streets had lessened as well. Most of the kurayami had sunk back into shadows, no longer drawn out by Lady Nettleton's hatpin. The few that remained were shredding, losing power in billowing clouds of smoke as their forms were destroyed by the light of day. It tainted the air and Kimihiro drew his scarf up around his face to shield himself. It smelt like burning grease threaded through with putrid rottenness.

His reappearance drew stares from the inhabitants of both worlds. Most of the people he had almost run down had already moved on but there were a few who clearly remembered him. Heads turned and faces appeared in windows and doorways. Kimihiro glanced up at the awnings hanging down over the footpath, catching the glint of gold that flashed past, and quickened his pace.

After his earlier run down the street, Kimihiro didn't want to draw any more attention that he already had. But he had to track down Lady Taihei and Lord Kimura before they caused any more harm. They weren't powerful enough to possess anyone but they had already proven that they were determined to do what damage they could manage. Kimihiro was determined to stop them before they could attempt anything. Neither of them were particularly strong in a supernatural sense but they were like levers that could spill more harm that was beyond their own means.

There was gold flash as they crossed one of the narrow roads which became one of the alleys that doubled as delivery lanes for the businesses that lined the main street. The dragon had dropped from the roof line onto the ground. Ryuu stood for a moment, head turned back to ensure they were following, and then the construct darted off further into the alley.

"Is it what you saw earlier?" Doumeki asked as soon as they had escaped the flow of people on the main walk.

Kimihiro glanced at him in surprise. He hadn't realized that Doumeki had noticed. "No." He turned his attention back to Ryuu. The dragon was darting a cautious course through the narrow thoroughfare. "When the dosojin was temporally unbalanced, the roads were weakened and certain things moved." He doubted the dosojin was the only cause in this case, though. "Two executed criminals-" He caught sight of someone in the alley ahead and fell silent.

Two men and a boy unloading goods, various sacks and boxes, from a wagon. Aside from a curious gaze, the men ignored them. But the boy, scurrying around with smaller packages, stared at them as they passed. It wasn't until one of the men shouted at him that he hurried back to his tasks. Kimihiro didn't say anything as they passed, waiting until they were out of earshot.

Doumeki glanced back at them for a moment then turned back to Kimihiro. "They were sealed after their death?"

Kimihiro nodded, pleased that Doumeki had come to the right conclusion. "But they aren't any more." His gloved hand tightened around his cane with a slight squeak. "I intend to seal them again."

The alley narrowed and Ryuu sped up, now running before them in plain view. It was close. They mustn't have gotten far. The backstreets Ryuu had led them through were only a few blocks from the café where they'd had morning tea.

It was a dead end that Ryuu finally led them to. Lady Taihei and Lord Kimura stood at the far end. The construct stopped in the mouth of the alley, blocking the spirits' exit. Not that it looked like they intended to escape.

The flower boy stared desperately from Lady Taihei's grasp. "M'lord!" It was a choked gasp, the cry choked off as the lady tightened her grip.

"You have a choice, Lord Watanuki." Lord Kimura stood beside her. "You can either let us go or be responsible for the destruction of this child." The smile he wore did nothing to warm his cold eyes. "Do you want that on your conscience, Lord Watanuki? I think not."

Flowers lay strewn across the uneven cobbles at their feet, the empty basket lying on its side nearby. The small bouquets had scattered, breaking apart on impact, the flowers flung across the ground. They were already dissolving, leaves and flowers slowly crumbling and falling apart.

Lady Taihei smiled and did something that made the boy let out a pained noise.

They were relatively weak but they could still destroy the spirit they held in their grasp. But if he let them go, they would do worse. Ryuu drew up with a hiss and Kimihiro pulled at the flow of power connecting them in warning. The dragon didn't take its eyes off the lord and lady but it sank back down a fraction. Kimihiro could see that the construct wasn't happy about simply blocking their path.

Neither was he. "You were condemned." Imprisoned. And it was his responsibility to see that they were once more.

Lord Taihei gave him a contemptuous stare. "And now it's up to you to make a choice." His eyes were cold. "Your duty in the protection of this child or your duty in apprehending us."

Kimihiro's hand clenched around his cane. Ayaka stared at him, dark eyes locked on him in pleading. He couldn't let the boy come to harm. But he couldn't let Lady Taihei and Lord Kimura free either-

Something dripped from the sagging eaves that hung over the alley. Kimihiro's eyes automatically sought the source of the noise, expecting to see a leaking gutter-

Kimihiro froze, rooted to the spot in fear and horror. A skeletal hand clutched onto the sagging roof tiles, its twisted fingers like knotted streams of ghastly wax. Milky liquid gathered at their tips, and trickled down onto the tiles, sliding slowly down to the edge of the roof.

But Kimihiro wasn't watching the flow of putrid waste that slid off the pallid skin. He was transfixed by the large lidless eye that shifted in a slow sweep of the alley. Pus ran in a weeping stream at the movement, tricking down into the apparition's mouth to join the glistening strands of filth leaking from between its teeth.

It didn't look remotely human or like any other living creature. But the loathsome thing that had been drawn to the alley had never been either. It was a munashiitori, one of the predators of the second world. Kimihiro had never seen one before but he had read about them. Hunters that only lived to feed, their beings a void never filled. Living or dead, it didn't matter. If the scent of pain and fear was strong enough, it would drag itself from whichever crevice it had hidden in and hunt down whatever had caught its attention.

He hadn't thought there had been any left. Not within the city. They were among the first elementals that Clow had expelled, too dangerous to exist within a city where there too many weak targets. Munashiitori had no restraint - they couldn't be reasoned with or restrained. Leaving one within the city was like locking children in a room with a starving carnivore. Kimihiro didn't know of any cases where a munashiitori had been encountered in the city but it had to have been imprisoned somewhere rather than expelled. And like Lady Taihei and Lord Kimura, it had somehow gotten free.

But even so, it should never have been _here_. No practitioner would have imprisoned a munashiitori in this area - it was one of the hotspots of supernatural activity. If the munashiitori had been bound somewhere, it would have been in a quieter area. And the road should have trapped it within a territory of a more powerful spirit, which would have been extra insurance should it ever escape.

The staring eye, half-clouded by the same filth that covered the rest of its body, slowly shifted once more. It focused on the flower boy and the munashiitori's grip tightened on the faded tiles as its body slowly rose.

He wasn't its target. Ayaka was.

"Lord Watanuki." Lord Kimura's voice was chill and sharp. He didn't take being ignored very well. "If you can't make a decision, then you force our hand." He made a small sideways flicking gesture with one hand. Lady Taihei smiled and suddenly twisted Ayaka's arm up behind him, nearly pulling the boy off his feet.

Ayaka's cry of pain ended in a frightened sob, his body going rigid with terror. The boy had seen the munashiitori looking down at him from where it crouched on the roof. And the look on his face now was one of sheer terror.

Lady Taihei stared down at him, smile lost in the suddenly tight lines of her mouth. She was obviously not pleased with that quiet response and the arm looped around Ayaka's neck suddenly tightened, jerking the boy's head back. Her other hand lifted, a knife flashing in its grip. She raised it to the boy's closest eye, staring at Kimihiro challengingly as she brought to point closer-

Her move was suddenly cut short as the munashiitori suddenly launched itself from the roof.

Doumeki suddenly pulled him back, a hard hand grasping Kimihiro's arm, and Ryuu sprang into action.

The dragon flashed forward, raking at Lady Taihei with a vicious swipe. The lady recoiled with a scream of pain, clutching at her face, the knife falling to the ground. Even as her arms loosened their grip on Ayaka, the construct was encircling the boy with its body, pushing Lady Taihei further back even as it blocked her access to the child. Lord Kimura was already moving forward in an attempt to intercept the construct when the munashiitori entered the fray.

There was a sickening snap as the elemental landed on Lord Kimura, one twisted forearm breaking into his ribcage. It withdrew almost immediately, letting loose a spray of dark liquid. The lord's liquid gasps, spilling more of the dark stuff across the cobbles, were drowned out by Lady Taihei's piercing screams as she staggered away.

The power Ryuu was drawing was a fire in his chest, flaring with every breath, but Kimihiro was barely aware of it. Afflicted by the foul smell and the wild screams – screams that were as familiar as they were terrible - Kimihiro had enough trouble keeping his gaze on the munashiitori's movements. He didn't even protest when Doumeki pulled him further away until both their backs were against the wall. If the munashiitori got past Ryuu they were as good as dead.

The munashiitori had turned towards Lady Taihei who was cornered in the dead end of the alley. She was desperately scrabbling at the walls, her nails snapping off against the hard surface that wasn't allowing even a spirit passage. They might have once but the guardian spirits of the surrounding buildings now denied access. The brick walls were now impenetrable barriers in the second world as well.

All previous sloth had vanished from the munashiitori's bearing. Now it lunged and grasped the terrified lady with a bony hand, pulling her away from the wall to slam her face-first into the cobbles. Her screams, which had been rising in pitch, were suddenly and viciously silenced. The knotted fingers flexed and the munashiitori suddenly crushed Lady Taihei's hip against the ground, eliciting one of the most dreadful noises that Kimihiro had ever heard.

Black liquid spread over the caged birds on the red silk of Lady Taihei's skirts. They were curiously flattened - the munashiitori hadn't just crushed her hip, it had almost ripped off her leg. She moved feebly, the hand of one outstretched arm gripping the cobbles in an attempt to pull herself away. But the munashiitori paid no attention to the feeble effort.

With the lord and lady disabled, the munashiitori slowly turned around, splatters of black sliding down its skin to blur into grey lines as it slid through the milky substance covering its body. Its head turned, one large eye fixing on its original target.

Ryuu reared up, pushing Ayaka back away from the renewed threat. The spirit stumbled at the abrupt shove. He regained his balance and made a desperate attempt for the basket that lay in the rotting tide of flowers. Only to be blocked as Ryuu flicked his tail out in warning. The flower boy took one look at the munashiitori staring at him and darted back with a cry of alarm.

The cry only seemed to entice the creature. It ignored the choked whimpers of Lady Taihei at its feet and took a step forward, its pale body held in a taut line parallel with the cobbles. Lord Kimura made an abortive move as it passed and it slammed one of its hands down on his wrist with a sickly crunch.

Ryuu had grown to a size that rivalled the munashiitori. The dragon now practically blocked the alley, shielding them from the predator that eyed them. As the munashiitori drew closer, the construct bared teeth with a warning hiss that echoed in the small space.

The munashiitori met the challenge with a strange whistling noise that sprayed white liquid from its mouth in a foul splatter. It fell just short of Ryuu, smoking as it hit the cobbles. For a moment construct and munashiitori simply glared at each other.

The munashiitori suddenly lunged forward.

Ryuu met the advance with raking claws, white smoke billowing forth as they ripped through the waxy skin. White liquid sprayed from the munashiitori's mouth as it twisted, trying to slip past the construct. It was met by Ryuu's tail and slammed against the side of the alley, roof tiles falling in a small cascade at the impact.

The munashiitori got to its feet, moving slightly slower. Its wax-like body was beaded with the pale liquid that coated it, small streams trickling to the cobbles. Their impact was marked by small eruptions of white smoke that thinned as they rose. Knotted lines of wax flexed on the cobbles as the munashiitori took a few slow steps.

Ryuu shifted into a better position, watching it but making no move.

The munashiitori made a small lunge that was met with teeth and claws. More of the white liquid was running in thick streams down the side of its misshapen head when it drew back.

A large clouded eye rolled toward Kimihiro. Its gaze was like a sudden impact of frost but Kimihiro didn't look away. He didn't know how intelligent it was, but it had apparently realized that he was the source of the construct's power. Any weakness he showed would reflect on Ryuu.

After a long moment, the munashiitori looked away. It surveyed the rest of the alley with a slow moving eye. White liquid dripped onto the cobbles beneath it, pooling around its hands and feet. It looked back to Ryuu, staring at the construct that stood blocking its path.

Apparently deciding against fresh attacks, it turned back to Lord Kimura and Lady Taihei. It ignored Lord Kimura where he gasped on the cobbles, the black liquid ebbing from his chest and wrist a growing pool, and turned to the lady who was whimpering and sobbing, trying to drag herself away. The munashiitori slowly walked up behind her, its eye fixed on her frantic struggles. It planted one twisted hand on her back, pinning her to the ground.

Lady Taihei panicked, her nails snapping off as she tried to drag herself free. "Kyou!" Her eyes rolled to Lord Kimura where he lay on the cobbles. "Kyou!" The name turned into a scream as the munashiitori reached down with its other hand and ripped off her leg in a spray of black.

Lady Taihei's screams echoed in the alley. Animal sounds that had no words. The screams only grew louder as the munashiitori started to eat her.

Kimihiro stared. So horrified that he couldn't look away. And frightened. It wasn't just horror that had a flush of ice running though his veins and cold sweat beading on his skin. His heart was beating fast as if he was running. He wanted to be running. But he couldn't. He couldn't move, only shrink back, hands rising to cover his ears to stop those terrible screams-

"Lord Watanuki!"

Kimihiro flinched. Lady Taihei was now staring at _him_. The hatred and contempt were gone, replaced with terror and pain. Her dark green eyes fixed on him from a pale face half obscured by wild hair and splattered with black. The arrogant composed woman was gone. "Save me, Lord Watanuki!"

Even after what she'd done, Kimihiro couldn't just stand by and watch. He had seen this before. People torn apart alive. It had been red blood that been splattered across the ground then. At the time he hadn't been able to do anything. But now he could.

A hand grasped his arm as he pushed off from the wall.

He half expected it to be Doumeki but it was Ayaka who stared up at him. The look the boy gave him was not that of a child. "They're bad people."

Kimihiro stared down at the black eyes that locked with his. They weren't angry but filled with something older, more unfathomable. More frightening. Kimihiro fought against the shiver that ran up his back. Trying not to flinch at Lady Taihei's screams. "No one deserves this."

Ayaka's gaze slid to the munashiitori which was tearing free Lady Taihei's other leg. Lord Kimura had succeeded in overcoming his pain and was dragging himself towards them with one arm, the fallen knife held in his hand. Ryuu stood still, guarding against the munashiitori. The boy looked back up at him. "I saw what they did." His eyes grew dark.

"They'll be punished." He'd dispel them - they were too dangerous to chance sealing again. "But not like this."

Ayaka look at him for a moment then slowly let go of his arm. The flower boy took a step forward and let out a piercing whistle.

The munashiitori's head snapped up, black liquid streaming from its mouth alongside white. It started moving but too late. The nearest wall suddenly disgorged a black thunderbolt that hit it from the side.

Black and white smashed into the cobbles in a confused scramble of limbs. Growls and high-pitched whistling sounds rose as white smoke erupted, obscuring the combatants. It lasted for several tense seconds and then the smoke slowly disappeared, revealing a large dark form. A huge dog stood over the munashiitori. The elemental was now torn into several pieces, a sprawl of greasy innards and waxy flesh scattered in a pool of milky liquid. Lips pulled back from its teeth, the dog growled down at the corpse as it bubbled and started to break down.

Lord Kimura made a small movement. The dog's head suddenly turned towards him, snapping its teeth on air in his direction. The lord froze where he lay on the ground. His hand slowly lifted from the knife he held. The dog stared at him for a moment then turned its attention to Kimihiro. It stared at him, a low growl building up in its throat.

Ryuu started to move but Doumeki suddenly stepped in front of Kimihiro, shielding him from sight.

The growl stopped. The dog stared at Doumeki, no longer baring its teeth. If anything, it looked curious. It took a step towards them. Two. It stopped short halfway through the third. The dog's head suddenly turned sharply to the east. Its muscles tensed and it suddenly sprung forward, leaping into the nearest wall and disappearing.

Ayaka darted forward to grasp his basket. Ignoring the liquidizing remains of the munashiitori and the two spirits that had taken him hostage, he ran after the dog, disappearing into the wall.

Kimihiro sagged back against the wall, light-headed, his legs suddenly weak. It had killed the munashiitori so easily. If Ryuu had fought it would have been close. He was already near his limit. Though he more control than he once did, it was too much power in one day. Kimihiro took a few deep breaths, willing the dizziness away and straightened, aware of Doumeki's arm under his elbow and the fierce concern on his face. "I'm fine." He said before the Keeper could ask. "Just relieved."

Doumeki didn't seem very impressed by that explanation but didn't say anything. He finally let go when it became clear that Kimihiro wasn't going to collapse.

Kimihiro glanced down the alley. Ryuu hadn't moved. Even though the munashiitori and the dog were gone, the construct was still on guard against Lord Kimura and Lady Taihei.

He still had to deal with them. Punishment. Grim assessment pushed away the last of his weakness. He wouldn't be sealing them.

Kimihiro took a hold of the head of his cane and twisted it. The sharp _snick_ as he released the thin spoke from its point echoed in the alley as he walked towards them.

Lord Kimura sat propped up against the wall. Lady Taihei lay in his lap, skirts limp and flat, only a torso streaked in black paint. The lord had his hand around the lady's neck. Even as Kimihiro drew closer, her body suddenly collapsed, disappearing into a billow of smoke.

Lord Kimura stared up at him. "How pitiful." Black fluid stained his mouth and neck and more ran down to join the flood leaking from his chest. Despite his own desperate state there was nothing but contempt in his words. "Relying on others to do your handiwork." His lips curled. "You're a disgrace even to the Watanuki name."

Kimihiro thrust the silver spoke home, channelling a jagged bolt of power through the cane's length and into the lord. Almost instantly the spirit dispelled into a thick black smoke.

Gone.

But it didn't erase his words.

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro pulled his cane free and stared down at whatever he had just used it on. His expression was closed, pale lines that gave away nothing except that he was hiding something. Kimihiro's gaze shifted to the cane and he twisted its head, sheathing the spoke protruding from its tip with a loud _snick_. For a long moment he just stared at the join of wall and cobbles. He hardly even reacted when Ryuu, about the size of kitten, came running across the cobbles and swarmed up Kimihiro's cane to rest on his arm.

Doumeki stood beside him but as the silence lengthened, his arms folded over his chest. "What was it?" He had a good idea - there were few things that could disappear through walls like that - but he wanted to give Kimihiro the chance to pull himself together.

Kimihiro finally glanced at him. He blinked as if he had forgotten Doumeki was there. His gaze turned to the wall where the large dog and the flower boy had disappeared. His turned back to Doumeki. "A wolf spirit." He frowned. "From its actions, its now an _ubusunagami_ (1), the protective spirit of the area."

Doumeki stared at the wall, curious now though that hadn't been his motivation in asking. "Isn't it unusual for an _ubusunagami_ in a city?"

Kimihiro's eyebrows rose in surprise. He stared at Doumeki for a moment before answering. "Most likely its a remnant from the time before the city existed. Before the founding of the capital, this area was mostly forest and plains." He looked around the alley as if seeing what had once been. "Mountain spirits used to protect crops from wild spirits. It was only when towns and cities grew more numerous that dog spirits were seen to protect against the dangers of the city: fire, theft and-" he smiled faintly "-child birth." He glanced back at the wall, smile fading. "This one is very old. It no longer hunts beasts of the physical realm but those of a supernatural nature."

Doumeki stared at the ground where the dog had stood. It had fought something and apparently won.

"A munashiitori in this case," Kimihiro continued before Doumeki could ask. "Could you see anything?" His eyes met Doumeki's, intent dark blue.

It was suddenly hard to concentrate on the conversation with Kimihiro looking at him like that. "The dog but not what it fought." He thought he'd seen smoke at one point but he couldn't be sure. But he'd definitely seen Kimihiro's reaction to it and that had told him plenty. He had been scared of it.

"They're elementals. Predators that prey on the living and the dead alike." Kimihiro was frowning. "There shouldn't have been one in the city. There are no recorded sightings within the walls after the capital was built." His frown deepened. "It must have been sealed heavily. It was probably released when the roads weakened."

Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro's cane. Apparently not the only one. "And if other things have been released?"

Dark blue eyes lifted to his face. "The _ubusunagami_ will deal with it. The reason why this area has been such a problem in the past was because it didn't have one. The second world was held in balance only by the efforts of the priests and wardens. The Keepers have kept a close eye on it through the years."

Doumeki thought for a moment. "Was the _ubusunagami_ sealed as well?"

Kimihiro gave him a startled stare, as if the idea hadn't occurred to him. His brow creased. "It's possible." The words were slow. "But..."

"But what?" He didn't want Kimihiro to get distracted again.

Kimihiro shot him a glance threaded with irritation. "It would have been centuries ago. There's no mention of an _ubusunagami_ here at any time." He shook his head slightly.

He was almost back to normal. Doumeki judged it was time to bring up what he had wanted to ask most. "And the spirits that had the flower boy?"

Kimihiro's face darkened. "Lord Kimura and Lady Taihei. They were publicly executed nearly seventy years ago."

The names weren't familiar. Doumeki tried to recall whether they had been mentioned by his tutors but he couldn't remember them. It hadn't been among the things Haruka had told him, either. "Executed for what?"

"Multiple counts of murder." Kimihiro took a tighter grip on his cane and started walking, heading out of the alley. "They were Traditionalists of the worst sort. When Lord Kimura's cousin was engaged to one of the new lords from the East, he protested the match. His protests were ignored and the marriage went ahead."

Doumeki lengthened his strides to keep up with Kimihiro. His steps had grown faster as he talked.

"Several years later, the couple was still childless. They'd had several children but none had lived much beyond their first year." Kimihiro's voice had darkened, turning grim. "Similar accidents had been befalling the children of Lady Taihei's sister. She had also married outside the older noble families."

Doumeki could see where this was going but he remained silent.

"It wasn't until the daughter of a prominent merchant family was found drowned in a well that the crown ordered an investigation. It led back to Lady Taihei and her connection with Lord Kimura was revealed." His voice was level but there was no mistaking the anger on Kimihiro's face. "After killing the children that threatened their bloodline, they had turned their attention to other children within the city."

They walked in silence for a moment. " 'They'll be punished' ?" It wasn't something Kimihiro would usually say.

Kimihiro glanced at him. "They were sealed after their execution. Even as they died, they showed no remorse for what they had done. And after they had broken free from their prison, they were still bent on harm." His steps slowed slightly. "The munashiitori had nearly killed them. I simply hastened their end."

Doumeki stared at him. Simply. The way Kimihiro was acting belied the word. Kimihiro wasn't one for violence, let alone killing. He studied Kimihiro thoughtfully. It was something Kimihiro would do only if he had to. He could only assume that in this case it had been a necessity.

They turned onto a narrow street. It was wide and straight, unlike the twisting streets they had been following. Neat houses and small shops lined the thin strip of pavement that ran next to the road. It wasn't nearly as busy as the main street where they had met Lady Nettleton and Lord Tatsuya but there were still some people on the street dressed in clothes which, while not as fine, were still modestly fashionable.

Kimihiro paused for a moment then crossed the road. There were a few stares as his subdued finery registered and even more when they saw Doumeki. But instead of gawking most of the walkers simply continued on their way. Discretion seemed to be the policy of the locals.

There was a narrow path between the fences of the two boundary lines. It would have been unremarkable if it wasn't for the rough gate that had been erected over its entrance from the street. It wasn't painted red like most shrine entrances were but it was unmistakably a torii. Kimihiro looked back to ensure he was with him and then started down the rough path.

It was little more than a series of paving stones set together. The lack of wild growth and the neatly trimmed bushes that sat to either side, however, suggested there was some sort of caretaker. But it wasn't a shrine that Doumeki was aware of. As Keeper he knew each shrine in the Southern Quarter - if he didn't know of its existence, then officially it didn't exist.

He gazed at Kimihiro's back thoughtfully. Ryuu's tail hung down over one shoulder, a thin golden trail that looked like an isolated thread of embroidery. At every step, the bright blue dragons at the cuff of his sleeves and the hem of his coat glittered. Now that he was on the path, there was no hesitation. Kimihiro, at least, was familiar with it.

The path continued past several houses then suddenly gave way to a small open area. At first glance it looked like a small garden. But as Doumeki looked closer he was able to pick out the small details that suggested it was more. Dozens of rough earthenware saucers were filled with puddles of wax and candle stubs. Paper streamers hung from bare branches, brightly coloured prayers offered to the wind which were reflected in several bowls placed on the ground. Close by, a small bowl with burnt sticks of incense sat to one side of the path. At the centre of the clearing stood a large skeletal plum tree, its charcoal branches reaching up to the grey sky. A small fence had been erected around it: thick stakes of bamboo thrust into the ground, their top surface cut to form a cradle for the branches that lay on them, joining the bamboo in a circular enclosure. Pine branches, Doumeki surmised. Plum, bamboo and pine: the winter triumvirate (2).

A line of colour behind the low fence caught his eye. It was a thin blue thread, two loose ends that looked like they had snapped apart and lay where they had fallen. As he followed Kimihiro closer, Doumeki saw that it had once circled the plum but now lay broken, a path open to let access to the skeletal tree.

Kimihiro stared down at the broken thread, his mouth tightening. "This wasn't from the road."

The ends had been cleanly cut. Doumeki glanced at the plum- A thick black haze marred the left side of the tree, a dark black sap running down its side. Doumeki blinked. The tree suddenly looked normal again - skeletal and dormant. He stared hard at it but didn't change. "There's something wrong with the plum."

Kimihiro glanced at him sharply and then back at the tree. "There is." His voice was grim. "It's practically dead." He stared up at the bare branches spreading overhead. "No one's noticed because of the season." He suddenly moved forward, stepping over the boundary of bamboo and pine. He stared down at the cut thread for a moment then carefully stepped over it towards the plum.

After a moment's hesitation, Doumeki followed him. He stared at the tree for a moment, feeling the same uneasiness he had felt when he'd seen the dark haze. The feeling only increased when he walked around the left side of the tree. He surveyed the trunk in front of him but there was nothing remotely like what he'd seen. The bark was undamaged, the branches above unharmed and long grass growing up around the trunk-

Doumeki knelt and pushed aside the grass, pursuing the unsettling sensation he was feeling. The long green stems parted to reveal two large holes trailing dark hardened trails of sap.

Kimihiro crouched down beside him and ripped off one of his gloves, tracing the holes with his bare fingertips. A look of anger crossed his face. "It's been drilled." His anger was building into fury. "Someone wanted to kill the plum." Kimihiro glared down at the holes and retrieved a snail pick from his sleeve. He carefully slid it into one of the holes, the thin silver instrument nearly disappearing entirely. "It's reached the heartwood. That's why Lady Taihei and Lord Kimura were able to break free." His face darkened. "They were sealed under this plum." He slipped the snail pick back into his sleeve and stood up, slowly surveying their surroundings. "There is no priest, no full-time guardian to care for this place. Anyone who knew it was here could have done this and no one would have seen them."

Doumeki studied the holes. "How many people would have known what it was?"

"It's hard to say. Anyone who knew what happened. It was a public execution and at the time it was no secret where they had been buried." Kimihiro shook his head, frustration in his eyes. "There's no way of knowing." He abruptly turned away from the tree and stepped over the boundaries again.

Doumeki watched him until he had cleared the low fence then turned back to the drill holes. He hesitated a moment then pressed a hand against the trunk.

Nothing. It wasn't even like the trees at Kiyoimizu.

He lifted his hand and stood, making his way slowly back to where Kimihiro stood waiting. He was pulling on his glove, the movement quick and precise, his cane tucked under one arm. "Enquiries with the caretaker might reveal something but I doubt it."

Doumeki glanced back at the plum. "Do you know who it is?"

Kimihiro shook his head. "One of the local priests might."

"I'll make enquiries." He watched as Kimihiro finished pulling on his glove. Now probably wasn't the best time but they were alone. "What were going to tell me earlier?"

Kimihiro paused in reaching for his cane. "I suspect Kotone and the other suspended wardens didn't relinquish their duties despite their dismissal." He met Doumeki's gaze squarely. "Kotone has some power. Daiki, however, could have been a practitioner if he wanted to. I wouldn't be surprised if the other suspended wardens had power as well." He frowned, staring up at the paper streamers fluttering up above them, fingers moving absently on his cane. "I suspect Haruka assigned them to certain trouble spots within the quarter." He met Doumeki's gaze again. "Since they haven't approached you before now, they must have been waiting to see what you'd do. To see whether held the same beliefs as your mother."

To see whether he was against the old ways or held the same beliefs Haruka had. Doumeki stared across the clearing, at the objects followers had placed beneath trees and bushes. He hadn't truly believed in the supernatural before. After his years at the palace, the Southern Ward had become distant, a place of happy memories and freedom when he had little of either. It was only when he had taken the role of Keeper that Doumeki had begun to see the extent the role played in the city and then he had focused on what he had seen as his duties. Reorganizing the wardens to see to the physical protection to the city and carrying out blessings and rites at the Southern Ward to attend to the spiritual needs of the people living in his quarter.

The supernatural hadn't come into it. When people came to him they were usually satisfied with rites and charms and that had been it. He hadn't even considered that the myths and legends had been based on fact. And as a result he had done nothing.

A hand rested gently on his shoulder. "It's not your fault." Kimihiro's smile was barely visible, almost sad. "The threat existed long before you were involved." His gaze lowered, "The blame lies elsewhere."

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Doumeki couldn't help noticing how close Kimihiro was. So close that it would be easy to reach out and pull him closer. Doumeki reached up to cover his hand but Kimihiro was faster. He turned away, pretending not to have seen.

Doumeki's hand slowly closed on air. Had the move been too sudden? Or had the mood already been too intimate? He lowered his hand to his side, looking around for a distraction to his thoughts.

A brightly coloured bowl, half-hidden under a nearby bush, caught his eye. It was an exquisite soup bowl with swirling designs of waves with small plovers darting over their crests. Or at least it had been once – a large crack ran through the image, a few small balloons of putty marking the rough repair job. But even broken it seemed out of place. Doumeki frowned and scanned the area around it- .

Twin gold eyes winked at him from the branches hanging over the bowl. It took him a moment to realize the hound wasn't real but a painted statue.

"It used to be a guardian statue." Kimihiro reached out with his cane and pushed back one of the concealing branches. The neck of the crouching hound was revealed, a muscled shoulder missing a large chip. Kimihiro studied it silently for a moment. "When older buildings are demolished sometimes people scavenge the guardians for their own use." He lowered his cane, releasing the branch, and gently tapped the hound on the head. "This one has no power. It was broken beyond repair."

Kimihiro reached into his pocket and retrieved his watch. He pressed the side and the cover smoothly lifted to reveal the pale face of the timepiece inside. "It's just past two. We have to leave now if we want to keep our appointment to see Lady Heath."

Doumeki took one last look at the statue of the hound and nodded. He knew what was happening in the city now and he intended to do everything in his power to protect the people under his protection.

~x~X~x~

1) Pretty much as Kimihiro describes them. In Japanese folklore _ubusunagami_ are the deities of certain geographical regions and the protectors of those who lived within their territories.

2) The winter triumvirate: pine, plum and bamboo. Known as _shochikubai_, a combined decorative motif of the Edo period which featured the three staples of the winter months. Each has its own qualities which, in this universe, reflects the characteristics it has in the second world.

~x~X~x~


	89. Royal Summons VIII

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**ROYAL SUMMONS:**

**VIII**

The Eastern Quarter was perhaps the most picturesque of the entire city. Narrow streets gave way to wide tree-lines avenues and manicured gardens. There had once been farmland within the city walls and while some still remained, the larger plots of land had been purchased by the growing middle class. The Eastern Quarter was also known as the Green Quarter and for good reason. Except for the western most section near the Hub, the outer reaches were more rural than urban.

The Eastern Ward was the largest ward of the city, incorporating the Agricultural College and the Imperial Botanical Gardens. The spiritual duties of the Eastern Keeper had always played a vital role in the history of the city and the Empire. The Keeper was responsible for placating the elements that controlled the annual rains and protected against the plagues of locusts and mice that were a re-occurring threat. The continued fertility of the Empire was still accredited to the Eastern Ward, though it was the Agricultural College rather than the shrine that was lauded. The sciences rather than spiritual intervention had received the credit.

The truth, however, was closer to a mixture of both, Kimihiro reflected. The Eastern Ward was one of the strongest of the city and still retained many of the practices that had been carried out for generations. Enough that what had been forgotten was regarded as trivial.

The Imperial Botanical Gardens were a younger institution. Originally it had been a park, the preservation of what remained of the ancient forest which had once engulfed the capital. It had only been with the expansion of the Empire, when different lands with their unique flora and fauna had been encountered, that the botanical gardens had been established. The preserved land had been expanded beyond the forest with small grottos and ravines created to mimic the landscapes of foreign countries, bringing the exotic variety of the empire's lands to the people in the capital. It was the botanical gardens that they had come to today. But it was the ancient forest that they walked rather than the carefully cultivated exotics that were open to the public.

Kimihiro pulled his coat around him tighter, rewinding his scarf to pull it up around his ears. It was close to three and the sun was already sinking, faint yellow lines slanting through the towering pines and cutting across the frozen ground. It was colder within the forest - the cold of the morning had been preserved throughout the day and was only worsening as the sun's brief ascendancy started to wane again.

It was a cold, ancient world. One of the few places within the capital that remained as it once had been. The second world overlapped closely here, only a thin line separating the two existences. Kimihiro could feel the presence of creatures of the second world among the trees; spots of cold and rippling movement like icy fingers brushing along his shoulders.

**-nuki.**

The word sounded like it had been whispered into his ear. But there was nothing there when he turned his head.

**Watanuki.** The word came from further away, a deeper echo. **Watanuki. ****_ Watanuki._** It continued. It was like an echo but one that didn't fade, one that came from various points around them.

Kimihiro relaxed slightly at the sight of the pale twisted straw rope that was draped around the trunk of a large pine. It wasn't the only one that he could see either. Kodama. Tree spirits.

Something moved in the shadows where two pine branches joined. Two small yellow eyes stared down at him. For a moment Kimihiro could see the dark gnarled shape of the small being that guarded the large pine. But then the small eyes winked out and there was only shadows shifting in the dimming light.

They were curious but they didn't intend any harm. Kimihiro loosened his grip on his cane.

And they weren't the only ones. In the wake of the dying echoes, other beings were revealing themselves. Shades lingered among the trees, dressed in clothes that predated the empire and dated back to the time when the city hadn't even existed. They watched their passage silently, making no move to stop the two men who intruded into the forest. There were more elementals, too. Slender yosei peered down at them from high branches, their feathery hair drifting around their faces. There was a soft whirr as yochu flitted overhead, a bright green trail blazing through the air to mark their passage. A flash of russet passed through low ferns as a kitsune disappeared into the undergrowth.

And silent crows sat in the branches, watching with pale blue eyes. They were still, simply staring. If it hadn't been for their pale eyes he wouldn't have been able to see them in the dark tangle of branches above the trail. Even in his sight they were nearly indistinguishable from the living trees.

But Doumeki had noticed them. He was staring up at one with a wary expression, eyes narrowed.

There was a burst of movement and Kimihiro flinched as one of the crows suddenly launched itself from its branch. It dove towards the ground, wings flaring out as its talons extended and hit its target.

A namekuji. The slug-like spirit twisted feebly in the crow's beak as it was tossed back and consumed in a series of head jerks that slid it further down the crow's throat. Meal consumed, the crow took to the air and settled on its branch once more.

Kimihiro stared at it, feeling uneasy. But the bird didn't even look at him, settling its feathers and resettling its wings.

There was a crunch of gravel. A glance showed that Doumeki had moved closer, a hand reaching for his pocket.

Kimihiro grabbed his arm before he could complete the gesture. "We're late." And the crows hadn't made any threatening move.

Doumeki was staring at his hand but then his eyes flicked up to Kimihiro's face. His arm suddenly relaxed, lax under Kimihiro's grip. But his eyes remained trained on Kimihiro's face, waiting. Almost as if he was expecting Kimihiro to-

Kimihiro abruptly let go. He started walking again, trying not to look too hurried. This was ridiculous. He should never have looked that book. If he didn't know better, he would have suspected it was cursed-

He scowled, turning out to look at the trees so Doumeki couldn't see his face. A yosei stared back at him curiously, head tilting sideways, but Kimihiro stared through it, more concerned with his thoughts than the inhabitants of the forest at the moment. He couldn't keep acting like this. Doumeki would notice sooner or later and take the opportunity to press his suit.

Kimihiro's right eye twitched. That was all he needed. Doumeki convinced that he had a chance. What was he going to do about-

He suddenly became aware of movement among the pines. A shifting of small spirits and elementals, all heading further into the trees. Converging on the same general direction.

It was only then that he registered the sound he had been hearing.

~x~X~x~

The crows were a constant presence, watching them with pale eyes. Doumeki kept an eye on them as he walked, not convinced of their surveillance. It could change to action within a second.

They weren't the only things in the forest, either. There were shadows and shapes he could see in the edge of his vision, that disappeared when he looked at them directly. He could practically feel things moving in the shadows and slipping between the trees. It wasn't a trail of heat or cold but more of a shifting, like invisible currents of wind that brushed over his skin.

Kimihiro's behaviour was only confirmation. His eyes were looking through the pines, fixing on things that weren't there and following other invisible movements. Spirits. Or at least something from the second world.

Movement caught his eye and Doumeki's head twisted towards the source. A fern frond was swaying, waving gently up and down as if something had just brushed past it. But there wasn't anything there. As least nothing he could see.

A hand suddenly closed on his arm.

Doumeki turned around. Kimihiro had stopped and was standing still, a curious look of surprised recognition on his face. His eyes shifted to Doumeki. "Do you hear it?"

At first Doumeki didn't know what he was talking about. There were the small chirps and trills of birds further off, the soft wind in the pine needles overhead. But after a moment he picked it up. A soft continuous hissing sound. Falling water.

Doumeki stared through the trees. "A waterfall?" He couldn't see anything.

Kimihiro's eyebrows lowered and then bounced back up. "This way." His hand tightened on Doumeki's arm, a surprisingly firm grip, and then he was pulling Doumeki off the path they had been following and into the forest.

There was no path but Kimihiro wove through the tangle of roots and branches as if he could see one. Occasionally, he swiped his cane at something in their path but he didn't falter. It was Doumeki who tripped and nearly fell, saved by a firm tug of Kimihiro's hand.

The sound of falling water grew until the distant hiss became the discernable rush and splash of a small waterfall. Kimihiro slowed as the trees began to thin and then came to a complete stop. The grip on Doumeki's arm suddenly became a cautious squeeze. Doumeki took one look at Kimihiro's face, taut and white, his eyes focused on something ahead of them, and then followed his gaze.

The forest gave way to a small clearing. At its centre was a small waterfall, a stream that fell several meters into a small body of water that could only be called a pond. It wasn't the water that had caught Kimihiro's attention, though. A woman stood in the centre of the pond.

It wasn't her presence that was strangest, though. It was her appearance that was alarming. She was half-dressed, clad only in her undergarments: a pale cream chemise and ivory stockings. They were wet and plastered to her slender body, leaving little to the imagination. She looked like a mad woman who had stumbled off the path. Losing her clothes somehow in the process.

Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro but instead of appearing scandalized by the woman's disarray, he looked concerned. He glanced at Doumeki then back to the woman. "My lady."

The woman looked up at his soft voice. Her hair was wet, too, clinging to her cheeks and neck. A bright smile crossed her face at the sight of them. "Water." Her voice was soft and childlike, full of wonder.

Doumeki frowned. She had to be one of the child-like people who cropped up every so often. Innocents who were usually sheltered from society, held tightly by their families. What she was doing here alone was the question.

Her sweet smile widened. "The water said you were coming." Her eyes were like dark pits in her face. Doumeki suddenly realized that it was because her pupils were wide open like Kimihiro's were when he was using his sight.

"Is that so?" Kimihiro had left the trees and was slowly moving closer to the edge of the water.

"Summer and spring." She tipped her hands, letting the water cupped in them fall to the pond in a noisy stream. "The dragon and the king."

Kimihiro had frozen at her words. "The king?" He glanced back at Doumeki, his eyes wide with shock.

Doumeki frowned. That was impossible.

The woman had turned to Kimihiro at his question and she started towards him, soaked skirts dragging through the water at every step. "The water-" She suddenly lost her footing and tumbled forward.

Doumeki moved but Kimihiro was closer. He darted forward into the pond, sending up a splash of water, and caught the woman before she could fall.

For a long moment the woman simply hung from Kimihiro's grip. But then her pale hands reached up to grasp at his shoulders and she pulled herself upright. Pale blue eyes blinked from under the long strands of wet hair. "Lord Watanuki." Her eyes were still dark, pupils fixed wide in a thin thread of blue. "What are you doing standing in a pond?"

Kimihiro's mouth twitched. "You're standing in it too, Lady Browning."

The lady blinked. She pushed away from Kimihiro and stared down at her wet chemise. "So I am." She sounded surprised to discover it. Her eyes fell on the water. "Was it you again-?" Her voice trailed off as she stared down at the rippling surface.

"Lady Browning?" Kimihiro reached out and hesitantly touched her arm.

"Hmm?" The lady blinked and looked up at him.

"Perhaps we should get out of the pond." Kimihiro made the suggestion as if he was offering a cup of tea.

Lady Browning looked at the water then back up at Kimihiro. "Arthur said I shouldn't be in the water during winter," she said suddenly. She set her hand on Kimihiro's offered arm.

Doumeki helped her out of the water and over the small incline of the pond's bank. She smiled at him vaguely as her feet touched dry ground. As soon as she let go, he held out a hand to help Kimihiro. The lord accepted the offer of help with a distracted look and stepped out of the water, his trousers and shoes dripping. But he hardly seemed aware of it. Kimihiro took off his coat, his scarf unravelling, and draped it over Lady Browning's shoulders.

The lady smiled up at him, one hand reaching up to take hold of the coat. "You've grown." Her eyes traced over his face, pausing on his right eye. "You've got much better control."

Kimihiro looked pleased yet slightly uncomfortable at the same time.

Lady Browning's gaze wandered onto him. "And you, too, Your Highness." She smiled. "You're much taller than when I saw you last."

Doumeki was sure that he would have remembered if they had met.

Her smile widened at his expression. "I'm not surprised you don't remember. You were only three at the time."

Three. Before his father had died. He could vaguely remember the time he had come to the botanical gardens with his father and grandfather. They had come during spring when the cherries surrounding the shrine had been in full bloom, pale pink against aged wood. But there hadn't been anyone-

His eyes widened as he suddenly remembered.

~x~X~x~

_Whack!_

Kimihiro staggered forward at the impact even as pain exploded across the back of his head. It was a familiar sensation and Kimihiro knew what had caused it even before he turned around to see who stood behind him.

"Kimihiro Watanuki!" A young woman stood behind him, her hair gathered up at the sides of her head and cascading in two falls of dark black. She wore a beautiful multi-layered kimono, dark blue and decorated with pale blue, white-capped waves. Hundreds of small dark plovers skimmed over their peaks, a precarious flight into uncertainty. Pale blue eyes, the same colour of the waves, bored into him. Even as the sturdy parasol she held was brandished in one hand.

A glance aside showed Doumeki wearing a slightly-pained expression as he raised a hand to his head. Apparently the Ame-Warashi had included him in her greeting as well.

A sharp jab to the shoulder with the end of the umbrella had him turning back to the powerful spirit.

"What took you so long?!" The umbrella was thrust into the ground. "I've been waiting for you." Her mouth pursed into an angry pout.

Kimihiro rubbed his shoulder. She hadn't held back with that jab. He could feel the bruise forming. "Waiting?"

The Ame-Warashi's face scrunched up in scowl. "What have you been doing all this time? Poking around and nearly getting yourself killed!" The parasol was shoved further into the ground. "If it wasn't for my crows you would have walked right into that goryo's traps!" She glared at him.

"Your crows?" Doumeki had latched onto the pertinent information.

The Ame-Warashi's pale blue eyes flicked to Doumeki. "And you!" The umbrella rose to point at him in added emphasis, her other hand resting on her hips. "You're just as bad!"

"They're your crows?" Kimihiro wanted confirmation.

The Ame-Warashi rounded on him. "Of course they're mine!" Her hands were on her hips, the parasol in her hand jutting out on an angle to the skirts of her kimono. "Who else's would they be? No one else was doing anything and I couldn't just let that goryo wander around unopposed." Her eyes narrowed. "But now it's your responsibility." The umbrella shot out one more, pointing at his chest. "You're a Watanuki and you have to uphold your part of the deal!"

Kimihiro suddenly sobered. She was right. He met her stare squarely. "I plan to."

"Hmph! You'd better!" The Ame-Warashi didn't look impressed. "I'll leave you the crows." Her eyes raked over them both disdainfully. "Neither of you have any sense and I keep my promises." Her eyes drilled into him. "But I'm not going to call the rain for you again! Don't even ask!" Her umbrella stabbed into the ground again and with one last glare she disappeared, her body disappearing into thousands of drops of water that trailed away into the air.

Lady Browning smiled at Doumeki. "That went well."

A short awkward silence followed that remark. Kimihiro was aware of Doumeki's thoughtful stare and couldn't meet his gaze. The Ame-Warashi said what she wanted with no thought of discretion. He only hoped that Doumeki wouldn't make any connections-

"Lucinda!" The silence was suddenly broken by a loud shout.

Lady Browning blinked and turned towards the source of the sound. "Arthur must have found my shoes." She smiled, pulling Kimihiro's coat more firmly around her. It was an absent gesture. Despite the temperature, she didn't appear effected by the cold. "He's good at that - I can never find them."

Kimihiro wasn't surprised. Lady Browning was one of the rare individuals whose sight never closed entirely. She always saw the second world overlapping the first, often to the point that the world she lived in was compromised, her attention divided. It was part of what led to her vagueness. But only in part.

There was a crash in the undergrowth and then a man burst into the clearing on the other side of the pond. He was wearing a formal suit, his trousers spattered with mud. There was a bundle of fabric clutched in his hands and a pair of dainty slippers held in his hands. Relief flooded his face when he saw them. "Lucinda!" He jogged over and knelt to place the shoes he carried on the ground in front his wife, even as he flung the material he held over his shoulder. At closer quarters, Kimihiro could see it was a plain kimono of the type often presented to short-term guests. "Your Highness, Lord Watanuki." He gave a sketchy bow from where he knelt, reaching for one of his wife's feet. "Thank you for looking after her."

"It was nothing." Kimihiro watched as Lady Browning set her hands on her husband's shoulders as she set one of her feet into hands. The lord pulled off her half-stocking and wiped her small foot clean with his handkerchief before setting it in her slipper. As soon as he let go of her foot, Lady Browning changed her footing, automatically offering her bare foot. She had one hand on his head at his point, her fingers running through his thinning hair as she smiled down at him.

Kimihiro averted his eyes. He noticed Doumeki's gaze on him and found himself inexplicably embarrassed. It had to be Doumeki's fault somehow-

"Lady Heath is in the main garden," Lord Browning continued as he slipped on the second slipper. "She plans to have afternoon tea before sunset. You should have a good hour to talk with her without any interruptions." He got his feet and looked over his wife. He reached out and tucked a strand of wet hair behind her ear. "You look like you fell in again." His voice was soft.

Her smile faltered slightly. "I don't remember."

"It's alright." He glanced over at Doumeki and Kimihiro. "It should only take a few minutes to reach the main garden. Despite appearances, we're actually very close. The Keeper's residence adjoins the forest." An apologetic expression crossed his face. "But first I'd like Lucinda-" He trailed off, gesturing at Lady Browning.

Kimihiro grasped the situation immediately. "Of course." He glanced at Doumeki to ensure that he had understood and turned so that he was facing out into the forest. A few seconds later, Doumeki followed suit.

"You've got a hard task in front of you." There was silence for a few moments and then there was soft _whump_ as wet clothes were discarded. "Cassandra doesn't believe that a festival is the answer."

"Is that why she won't see me?" Doumeki's question made Kimihiro jump. He hadn't known that Doumeki was standing that close.

There was rustling of fabric. "Partly." Lord Browning sounded terse. "Cassandra has her own ideas regarding the incorporation of tradition in the fabric of the city. And an exact view of what a Keeper's duty entails-" He suddenly fell silent. "Lucinda." There was a faint hint of exasperation in the name.

"Hmm?" From the sounds of it, Lady Browning had gotten distracted again.

"Hold this for me." There was another rustling noise. "Cassandra is one of the old generation," Lord Browning continued. His voice was somewhat distracted. "She takes her duty as seriously as she does the loyalty she holds for the crown."

Kimihiro knew what Lord Browning was trying to say. They weren't going to have an easy time convincing the Eastern Keeper to their cause. But he had expected it to be the case.

"But I think you have a chance." Lord Browning sounded cautiously optimistic. "If you explain the situation in terms that she'll regard favourably." There was a short pause. "There. You can turn around now."

Kimihiro slowly turned around.

Lady Browning smiled at him. Her husband had dressed her in the kimono he had been carrying and pulled her hair back in a loose bun at the base of her neck. It if wasn't for the ill-matching slippers she wore, the lady could have just come from bathing in some hot springs.

Lord Browning handed him back his coat with a nod of thanks. "Stress the importance of the city's safety but try to avoid mentioning the past." He picked up the discarded chemise, rolling the wet fabric into a loose ball. "Cassandra will at least hear you out."

Kimihiro slipped his coat back on, ignoring the slightly-damp lining. "We'll do our best."

Lord Browning studied him for a moment and then nodded. "I hope it will be enough." He reached out and took his wife's hand, starting to lead her away. "Follow us from a distance and you'll have a better chance."

Kimihiro's mouth tightened but he could understand the reasoning behind that. Lady Browning's appearance would provide enough of a distraction for them to approach unnoticed. And once they were at the lady's table, she would be hard-pressed to eject them without hearing them out.

He glanced over at Doumeki, trying to gauge his reaction to what he had heard.

But Doumeki was staring up at the trees overhead. The Ame-Warashi's crows were still there, watching over them with pale blue eyes.

~x~X~x~


	90. Royal Summons IX

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**ROYAL SUMMONS:**

**IX**

The main garden was designed in the Eastern style, a carefully manicured lawn studded with maples, pines and thick box hedges. Amidst a grove of pines on a small hill sat a gazebo overlooking the grounds. Lord and Lady Browning strolled slowly up the main path as Doumeki and Kimihiro followed from a distance, lingering in the cover of the pines that lined the main avenue.

Doumeki looked up from time to time but didn't see anything above. None of the crows had followed them out of the forest.

"Arthur." The voice was cool but threaded through with exasperation. "How many times have I asked you to ensure Lucinda doesn't wander away?" There was a sigh. "She has no idea where she's going half of the time."

"I'm sorry, Cassandra. She got away from me again." Lord Browning sounded apologetic.

"Really, Arthur." Lady Heath's voice was chiding. "If you're not careful, she's going to have a fall."

They climbed the last stretch of the hill and Doumeki could finally see the gazebo's occupants. Lady Browning was being seated at the small table by her husband who had yet to take his seat. Across from them both sat Lady Heath. With her grey hair pulled back from her rounded face she looked like a benevolent grandmother. But Doumeki knew that she had a will of steel beneath the soft exterior.

As if she had heard his thoughts, the Eastern Keeper suddenly turned towards the path, spotting both of them. "Your Highness." Her brown eyes raked over him, ignoring Kimihiro at his side. "I thought you had better manners than to interrupt a private gathering without invitation."

Kimihiro was unmoved by the accusation. "We were invited by Lady Browning."

The Eastern Keeper's eyes narrowed, her mouth pursed in a look of irritation. She shot the younger woman a sharp stare before finally turning her attention to Kimihiro. She stared at him for a long moment, eyes curiously empty. "I never expected to see you again." The tone of her voice suggested that she hadn't wanted to.

Kimihiro's gloved hand tightened around his cane. "Events have forced my hand."

Lady Heath swept her eyes over Kimihiro in a quick dark scan. "I presume you're here as Lord Watanuki rather than in your position as head of the Southern Quarter's second line?" Her voice was cold.

Doumeki's eyes narrowed. It was the second time today that Kimihiro's title had been given precedent over his role as a supporter of the Southern Ward.

Kimihiro was impassive. "No." His voice was cool, a match for the older woman's. "I'm here as both."

There was strained silence as the two locked gazes, Lady Heath staring down from her seat in the gazebo and Kimihiro looking up at her from the lower ground outside. "Arthur." Lady Heath didn't take her eyes off Kimihiro. "Take Lucinda for a walk."

Lord Browning looked uncertainly to Kimihiro who nodded slightly, his eyes still on the Eastern Keeper. The lord took his wife's elbow and helped her out of her seat again. "Come now, my dear." His voice was cheerful but there was worry in his eyes. "I think we should go for a walk."

For a moment Lady Browning resisted, staring at the older woman sharply. But then a vague smile appeared on her face. "A walk." She allowed her husband to help her to her feet and down the gazebo stairs to where Doumeki and Kimihiro stood. But she resisted when he started to lead her past them.

Her eyes locked on Doumeki and he was subjected to the full force of her gaze, wide black pupils rimmed in a thin line of pale blue. "I was happy to meet you again, Your Highness." Her voice was quiet but not the least bit vague. "Like your grandfather and your father you are a good man."

Doumeki's breath caught as his chest tightened at the unexpected words. No one had said anything like that before. Comparisons were usually avoided at the Palace. And neither Haruka nor his father was mentioned at court. "Thank you."

"No. My thanks are with you for what you will do-" She stopped talking. Her eyes were suddenly fixed on Kimihiro's face, focused on his right eye. At least that was what Doumeki thought until saw the faint shifting of her darkened eyes as she followed the moment of whatever she saw. "It's very beautiful." Her voice was soft, slightly sad. "Beautiful and terrifying. Like flames that will consume the world."

"Lucinda." Lord Browning set a gentle hand on her arm. He looked upset.

She blinked and her smiled brightened slightly as she covered his hand with her own. "Sorry, Arthur. I'll try to pay better attention."

Doumeki's eyes were on Kimihiro, though. He was pale, his dark blue eyes almost black in his white face. He looked almost frightened.

"You're both welcome in my house." Lady Browning continued, as if Lady Heath wasn't even there. Her eyes fixed on Doumeki. "Feel free to visit me if you feel the need."

"Lucinda." Lady Heath's voice was sharp.

Lord Browning glanced back at the gazebo and nodded to Kimihiro and Doumeki. "I'll talk to you later." Lady Browning smiled as she passed them and hugged her husband's coat more tightly around her shoulder.

There was a short silence after they had left. Lady Heath lifted her teacup. "Take a seat." Her dark eyes were cold and watchful. "You might as well explain why you're here."

Kimihiro looked at him with a quick sidelong flash of blue before ascending the gazebo steps and pulling out a chair. His face was composed once more, the fear he had shown at Lady Browning's words covered by the impassive mask he wore when facing a threat.

Doumeki warily followed and pulled out his own chair, settling lightly, aware of the old woman's sharp eyes trained on him. She didn't offer tea and Kimihiro didn't ask for any. Doumeki could already see where the meeting was heading. It would take long negotiation to pry permission from the Eastern Keeper.

But Kimihiro wasn't pulling any punches. "A goryo is inside the city."

Lady Heath didn't even react to the news. "Lucinda received your letter."

Kimihiro's mouth tightened. "Not just any goryo. One from outside the boundaries. He's already in the city and has penetrated the Northern Ward."

Lady Heath fixed him with an emotionless stare. "The Southern Ward still holds. Are you trying to tell me that one of Them has slipped through the wards and is now in the city?" She raised an eyebrow. "Do you have any proof?"

Doumeki felt a stir of anger. There was no concern in Lady Heath's face, only mockery.

Kimihiro's right eye twitched. "The chief physician of the Northern Ward was murdered. A calling card was left on the body."

"A card you no longer have." The Eastern Keeper observed. "I suppose that was coincidence as well."

Kimihiro's mouth tightened.

"You expect me to agree to a festival on grounds of an incursion you can't prove." She leaned back in her chair. "I refuse."

There was silence at the blunt rejection. Doumeki studied the face of the older woman. She looked perfectly composed, secure in her decision. He turned to Kimihiro. His face was blank, an expressionless mask. He met Doumeki's gaze then turned back to Lady Heath.

"And if I ask you as Lord Watanuki?" His voice was soft, but there was an edge to his question.

Her mouth drew tight. "If what you say is true," she sounded like she doubted Kimihiro's words, "your private matter comes close to threatening innocent people." Her eyes flashed. "Deal with that first and I might respect the position you claim."

Kimihiro had gone deathly still at her words. He was several shades paler than usual, his face drawn. "It's not that simple."

But the Eastern Keeper was merciless. "How many have already died because of your feud?" She leaned forward in her chair, eyes burning. "How many have died because of you, _Lord Watanuki_?"

Doumeki's jaw clenched. She made it sound as if the entire situation was Kimihiro's fault.

Lady Heath turned to him. "You obviously haven't been told everything, Your Highness." Her mouth tightened in disapproval. "You should know better than to tie your fate to someone without knowing their background."

Kimihiro's eyes had been fixed on Lady Heath. But they now flicked sideways to meet Doumeki's stare. His eyes were dark but he didn't say anything, neither denial nor defence.

But Kimihiro never defended himself.

Doumeki kept his eyes locked with Kimihiro's. "I know enough."

Kimihiro blinked, a strange expression crossing his face, then suddenly turned away.

Lady Heath's eyes narrowed. "You're just like Haruka." Unlike Lady Browning, she didn't appear to find the comparison favourable. Contempt was thick in her voice. "Wilfully blind to the true state of the situation."

The air grew palpably cooler as Kimihiro drew himself up in his chair. "Haruka saw more clearly than anyone." The words were practically snapped out. Kimihiro's eyes flashed, his expressionless face suddenly alive with barely suppressed anger.

Lady Heath's face tightened, her mouth drawing tight into a thin line. She picked up her teacup.

Kimihiro fixed the older woman with eyes like frozen sapphires. "I ask you again. Reconsider before you make a terrible mistake that will cost lives."

Lady Heath's cup lowered from her lips. She stared at him for a long moment saying nothing. "Your mother once asked something of me using similar words." Her eyes narrowed. "I never liked that woman." She didn't seem to care that the son of the woman in question was sitting at her table. "So full of wilful arrogance." Her mouth drew tight. "I declined her just as I decline you now." She fixed Kimihiro with a hard gaze. "Times have changed. The Watanuki line is all but obsolete."

Doumeki's hand was fisted in his lap so hard that his nails were digging into his palm. Only Kimihiro's foot stepping on his, warning him not to interfere, kept him silent. But it was a struggle.

Kimihiro was deathly still. "If you ignore such a threat, the people in your quarter will be in danger." A thread of anger was leaking into Kimihiro's voice. Doumeki was surprised that he had managed to hold onto it for so long.

Lady Heath's reply was chill. "The Eastern Quarter is secure. There have been no scandalous breaches like those in the Northern Ward's hospital." Her eyes pinned Doumeki. "Nor have there been any murders." Her eyes flicked back to Kimihiro. "Instead of searching for a goryo, perhaps you should focus on your own ability to govern your quarter."

"Are you accusing me of neglecting my duty?" He couldn't remain silent at that, not even with Kimihiro's warning.

The lady's eyes fixed on him, filled with scorn. "Can you deny it? Until recently you did nothing to counter the deterioration of the Southern Ward. Kiyoimizu and Highbridge are at a fraction of their strength." Her eyes were cold. "And it's doubtful that Kiyoimizu will ever fully recover. The shrines and the roads are the only other support for the Ward and I have heard worse about them."

She didn't allow him time to respond, continuing her attack on Kimihiro. "You have been led astray, Lord Doumeki." She had eschewed both his title as prince and Keeper. "It's a Keeper's duty to maintain the Wards but it is the second line's responsibility to give support." She fixed Kimihiro with a hostile stare. "_Not_ to meddle in the business of the Quarter and stir up things that have been left sleeping."

"Meddle." Kimihiro's voice was toneless. "I wonder what role you see for us?" The words were brittle, threaded through with broken glass.

"We maintain the balance." Lady Heath's voice was unyielding. "Spirits and elementals are part of this city. Kept in a complex web that ensures our survival. It is not for us to decide the weight one holds over the other. A Keeper guards that balance."

Kimihiro's eyes were furious blue slits but his voice was level. "Is that how you explain Lord Ellis' death?"

Lady Heath jerked back as if slapped. "How dare you," she hissed. Her eyes flashed. "How _dare_ you even suggest such a thing."

Kimihiro was unmoved. "There is plenty of proof, Lady Heath." He wasn't using her proper title as Keeper but the bare minimum for civility. "Lady Ellis has faced that truth even if you are unwilling."

The older woman suddenly stilled. "You speak of events which you know nothing of." Anger sizzled in her words. "What happened to Louis was regrettable but stemmed from his own actions, not the dereliction of this Ward." Her eyes flickered. "Tereza seeks to pin the blame to lessen her own guilt."

Kimihiro was sitting rigidly in his chair. To Doumeki he looked like he was ready to explode. His hand was clenched tightly over the head of his cane while the other clutched tightly to the arm of his chair. But he simply flexed his fingers, a gesture Doumeki recognised when he was trying to calm himself. "I already have the support of North and South." Kimihiro's voice was level. "If you-"

"Support?" Lady Heath scoffed. "Lord Durham is untested and has no support. He grasps you onto as he would a life line. And if the Doumeki line continues to remain the lapdog of the Watanuki line, that's their concern." She cast Doumeki a disparaging glance.

If the woman had any remaining credit with him, that last remark wiped them out. No one had dared to insult him to his face in such a way. No one had dared to insult his _father_ or _Haruka_ in such a way.

Lady Heath's cup descended onto its saucer with a precise click. "The wards of this city have held for centuries. It's not the Wards which are weakening but the people who run them." Her eyes narrowed. "The Northern Ward is in tatters from its mismanagement and I have little hope for its future. And the South-" Her eyes turned to him, contempt in her gaze. "The South has always been reckless and inclined to embed itself in situations that threaten the entire city."

"Only East and West are not experiencing the difficulties to which you refer." She gazed out at the surrounding grove of pines. "And that's because they are run as they have always been, maintaining the balance as they have for centuries." Her eyes turned back to Kimihiro. "If North and South were run properly, you wouldn't be having the problems you now lay at the feet of a renegade goryo."

"This isn't just the problem of a loose goryo. Or even a break in the wards." Kimihiro was leaning forward in his chair, barely seated. "He is one of _Them_." Frustration cloaked the urgency in his words. "You know what this means."

The Eastern Keeper had watched Kimihiro in silence as he spoke, her face expressionless. "I know what it means." Her eyelids lowered, casting a veil of pale lashes over her eyes. "Fear in excess is what the Watanuki line has brought this city." Her eyes rose to pin Kimihiro. They were devoid of anger, filled with something worse. Accusation. "Fear is what your parents brought when they returned from their long _expedition_." The last word was said with loathing. "Faltering lines and guttering wards. News of attempts of on the borders of the empire and worse within. Dire predictions of what would happen if nothing was done." Her lips pursed into bloodless lines. "And my mother believed their words."

The tension at the table was excruciating. Kimihiro's foot was pressing down hard on Doumeki's but he didn't even seem aware of what he was doing. He sat with his eyes locked on the older woman, face frozen, seeming not even to breathe.

"And what came?" The words were bitter. "A pitiful incursion that was turned back with little effort."

"_Little effort_?" The words were disbelieving. Kimihiro's eyes were furious blue slits. "People gave their lives to stop that pitiful incursion."

Lady Heath's eyes snapped brown fire. "The only ones who died were those foolish enough to go beyond the wards. Their own overbearing pride is what killed them."

Kimihiro jerked as if slapped.

But Lady Heath was merciless. "Ultimately the wards held and they were repelled. The dire threat was to the Watanuki line rather than the city itself." Her eyes flashed. "And once the line has ended, the threat will vanish also."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed. That sounded like a threat to him.

The cane had fallen with a clack against the table. Kimihiro was pale. "You really believe that." His hand was shaking as he took hold of the cane again.

The lady's face was closed, showing nothing except the anger in her glittering eyes. "You know the nature of goryo better than anyone, Lord Watanuki." The anger in her voice had been controlled in the guise of cold practicality. "You can either destroy them or placate them. In this case it would be easier to do the latter."

Give Kimihiro to Him to save themselves.

Doumeki stood, chair legs scrapping. "I've heard enough." He held out a hand to help Kimihiro to his feet. Kimihiro looked up at him, startled and hesitantly reached out. Doumeki took his hand before he could change his mind and pulled him to his feet.

Lady Heath didn't bother with the courtesy to rise. "I trust you know the way. See yourselves out."

Kimihiro's hand twitched in his grip. But he said nothing as Doumeki led him out of the gazebo.

~x~X~x~


	91. Royal Summons X

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**ROYAL SUMMONS**

**X**

"I shouldn't have come." The words were quiet. A glance showed Kimihiro looking disgusted with himself. "It only made the situation worse." He frowned. "Lady Heath won't hear anything I say."

Doumeki couldn't deny that. But he didn't see it as Kimihiro's fault. "I wouldn't have even managed to see her by myself. And I doubt she would have listened to what I had to say." Lady Heath didn't like him anymore than she did Kimihiro. She seemed to have written him off as incompetent and ignorant. Whether it was in part the relationship she had with his mother, though, he didn't know.

Kimihiro stopped walking and turned to face him. A faint smile crossed his lips, gone seconds later. "Neither of us have her favour." He started walking again. "But we have to have her agreement for the festival." His voice became dry. "Unless Her Majesty reinstates it herself."

That wasn't likely. They had to get the Eastern Keeper's agreement. "How can we persuade Lady Heath?"

Kimihiro was silent for a moment. "We have two Keepers already. Two remain."

"Lord Ishiyama?" Doumeki turned over the possibility in his mind. "Would he able to convince Lady Heath?"

"Maybe." One of end of Kimihiro's scarf fell forward over his shoulder and he readjusted it. "They've been guarding East and West for the last thirty years. Lady Heath will give more weight to Lord Ishiyama's words than any other Keeper."

Considering what the lady had said about Lord Durham and himself, that wasn't entirely reassuring. But they had a better chance of convincing Lord Ishiyama. He hadn't barred his doors to either of them. Despite the rebuffs that Alastaire had experienced, there was almost a friendly accord between West and South. Both Wards took an offensive outlook compared the defence of North and East.

They were both silent as they walked back to the carriage. Doumeki was reviewing the interactions he'd had with Lord Ishiyama in the past while Kimihiro kept his own council. The times Doumeki looked at him, though, showed that he was brooding. Likely reviewing the clash he'd had with the older woman. It was much the way he had looked at breakfast that morning.

The carriage came into sight. Doumeki wondered if he'd be able to persuade Kimihiro to have dinner at the Southern Ward.

A low caw sounded out. There was a flash of movement and he turned to see a crow gliding overhead. It flapped its wings once or twice to gain a bit more height, skipping over the parked carriage. Glossy black wings fanned as it back winged and landed neatly on a nearby branch. It settled its wings and peered down at them with pale blue eyes, making no pretence of its interest.

It wasn't the only one. A quick glance at the nearby trees revealed other feathered bodies sitting on branches. The Ame-Warashi's crows. At least they had support from that quarter.

But he couldn't shake the faint sense of uneasiness the sight of them brought to life. Even when he knew their origin, there was still the matter of their purpose.

Kimihiro didn't seem to share the same reservations, though. After one quick glance up at the trees, he continued walking to carriage.

The footman was glancing uneasily up at the crows but he snapped to attention as they drew close and opened the door. Doumeki gave him a small signal and he stepped back.

"What next?" Doumeki held out a hand to help Kimihiro in the carriage.

"We make an appointment with the Western Ward." Kimihiro took the offered hand and set a foot on the footstep, reaching for the handle to pull himself up. Only to pause. Kimihiro suddenly sent him a suspicious look. "What are you doing?"

What did it look like he was doing? "Helping you into the carriage."

Kimihiro stared down at their joined hands with a look of disquiet. He suddenly completed the climb into the cabin, his hand leaving Doumeki's supporting grip. "I don't need help."

Doumeki stared after him. Had that been-? It had. There had been colour in Kimihiro's pale cheeks. He was blushing.

Spirit's rising, Doumeki set a foot on the foot step and pulled himself into the carriage. Kimihiro was sitting in the furthest corner of the bench seat, glaring out the window. His cane sat propped up against the side of the cabin and his arms were crossed tightly over his chest. Doumeki couldn't see his face except for a faint reflection on the window. But the sight of a few unruly strands of his short hair sticking out over the pale curve of his ear, prickly like his current embarrassed attitude, made Doumeki smile.

He settled on the bench beside him, staring and making no pretence of the fact. As far as he was concerned, after making his declaration at New Years he didn't have to hide anything anymore. He wanted to convince Kimihiro of his intentions, not hide how he felt. And that meant he could stare all he wanted. The thought made him feel somewhat smug.

The carriage door made a small thud as the footman shut it firmly. Kimihiro turned automatically at the sound only to catch him watching. His eyes widened slightly then narrowed into a scowl. His arms suddenly uncrossed, as he opened his mouth for some sharp comment.

That was exactly what Doumeki was waiting for. He reached out and grasped Kimihiro's nearest hand, fingers curling tightly around the gloved digits.

Kimihiro automatically tried to pull free. Whatever he was going to say was forgotten in face of the new annoyance. "Let go!" It was an angry hiss.

Not likely. "We're courting." The angry twitch that elicited made him feel warm inside. "It's expected we'd hold hands in private." He wanted to do more than that but Kimihiro's cane was a consideration. He'd either get brained or stabbed with the end. Though it might be worth it-

"You're courting!" There were spots of colour in Kimihiro's pale cheeks and Doumeki suspected it wasn't just anger. "I'm doing nothing of the sort!" He tugged at his hand.

Doumeki easily resisted the effort. "I wouldn't mind if you did." Kimihiro stared at him in shock and Doumeki seized the opportunity to bring their joined hands to rest on the bench between them. His on top, with greater leverage.

"You like me don't you?" He was pretty sure of it by now. Kimihiro was making a bit too much of the situation. It wasn't the first time they'd held hands, after all.

Kimihiro was staring at him, his eyes just a little too wide. But he didn't deny it. He glanced down at their hands again. The sight seemed to reignite some of his annoyance. "That doesn't mean I want to hold hands with you." His anger was dampened into irritation.

"No one's watching." Doumeki pointed out.

Kimihiro gave him a stare that would have withered grass. "That's not the point."

"Then what is?"

"It's-" Kimihiro floundered, scrambling for words. Doumeki was suddenly intrigued by the difficulty Kimihiro was having meeting his eyes.

"If you can't think of something, then I'm not going to let go." Wouldn't even if he did.

Kimihiro fell silent. Not speaking but not trying to pull his hand free, either.

That had been easier than he had expected. Maybe he should have chanced the cane.

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro made his way up the staircase to the second floor. He was barely aware of Hikideshi following a step behind. Thoughts were jumbling in his mind, cutting across each other and multiplying as they intersected. After all that had happened, he was still coming to terms with what he had learned. Not even Doumeki's blatant advances had been enough to distract him from the reality of the situation.

"Lady Heath refused to even consider a festival." He didn't even pause as they reached the landing, walking to the door of the map room. He cast a glance at Hikideshi. "She considers the situation a personal matter rather than one that concerns the entire city."

Hikideshi's eyes narrowed slightly at his words but he didn't look surprised. "Lady Heath has allied herself closely with the crown. No doubt the influence has gone both ways."

Kimihiro frowned. The thought had occurred to him before but Hikideshi's words leant it extra weight. The alliance between the two women had come about after the _Yokoboseru_ had sunk but Kimihiro had never learned who had approached who. Either way, Kimihiro knew that Lady Heath would be seeking out Her Majesty to tell her of their uninvited intrusion. The repercussions weren't likely to be good for either of them. The problems it would cause for Doumeki were of more concern that anything that might happen to him. He had come too far along now to worry about royal displeasure.

He grasped hold of the intricate handle and opened the warded door. A glance revealed that Hikideshi had anticipated him. One of the earlier maps was laid out on the table. The one that stopped just short of Haruka's death.

Kimihiro turned to Hikideshi. "You knew." The sudden realization was like a drenching with cold water. Hikideshi had known where Haruka had died. And he hadn't said anything.

Hikideshi had stepped into the room and was closing the door behind him. He inclined his head slightly. "The mansion is linked to the Southern Ward and thus the Central Ward."

And thus Hikideshi was linked to both. The thought was half-frozen. It wasn't as great a shock as when Doumeki had told him but it was a shock, nonetheless.

"I told you what I knew." Hikideshi continued. "With His Grace's passing the wards were strengthened." His eyes were solemn.

"The Palace." Kimihiro felt slightly faint.

Hikideshi glanced at the map, the central circle encasing the cherry blossom of the royal house. "The central point."

And the most protected. The palace was located in a bend of the Kurokawa River. During the founding of the city, canals had been built to channel the river around the palace, effectively making what was practically a city within the city into an island. The royal complex was surrounded by running water on all sides, giving it protection against supernatural enemies as well as physical ones. The shrine and mirroring gardens flanking the palace also provided additional protection. Its defences were further bolstered by the city itself. The four main roads channelled spirits through the city and deflected them onto the circular road that encased the central district. The four cardinal Wards, supported by the parks and networks of shrines in their quarters, supported the Central Ward in turn. In short, the entire city protected and was powered by its heart.

And that was where Haruka had gone to die.

Hikideshi walked over to the map table and picked up the pen sitting on its surface. He leaned forward to mark a small precise cross in the centre of the map.

The letter. The promise Haruka had elicited from him the last time they had meet. Kimihiro stared down at the red mark encroaching on the sakura blossom of the royal house. Where Haruka had sacrificed himself to bolster the wards.

Or at least that was what Kimihiro had thought. But he wasn't certain now. He had only had a vague idea what had happened. Even Lady Amita had been unaware of the details. In retrospect, the secrecy was strange. Haruka had always been open with him. Except in this.

"You think something's gone wrong." Hikideshi wouldn't have marked the palace if he didn't.

Hikideshi straightened from leaning over the map. "There are other methods to strengthen the wards." His eyes lifted from the cross he had just made, solemn black. "His Grace wouldn't have ventured into the palace unless he had to."

_The dragon and the king._ Lady Browning's words were stark in his mind. Doumeki had abdicated but maybe her words had nothing to do with earthly status. "Lady Browning called Doumeki king."

Hikideshi slowly set down the pen on the map. With the light from the chandelier picking up the streaks of silver in his black hair, he suddenly looked old. An impression that was suddenly contradicted by the look he shot Kimihiro. "I think it's time His Grace learnt more about his abilities."

Kimihiro nodded unhappily. "He'll be over later in the week." Doumeki never stayed away for long. He glanced at the map, suddenly feeling incredible tired. Holding the dosojin had taken a lot out of him. And the meeting with Lady Heath had taken its own toll. "One of Haruka's dosojin was disturbed. Unearthed by road workers."

Hikideshi's eyes narrowed. "Who ordered it?"

"They claimed to have a royal writ." Kimihiro was starting to get a headache. He pinched the bridge of his nose. "But I doubt Her Majesty would have approved." Not within a quarter under her son's governance. "The road was weakened and a munashiitori was freed."

The butler's eyes shot to him in a dark stare.

"Fortunately the local _ubusunagami_ was around as well." When there wasn't meant to be one in the area. He glanced at Hikideshi. "Could it have been sealed?"

Hikideshi frowned down at the map. "It's possible. There was confusion in the early years." He sounded somewhat distracted.

"Lord Kimura and Lady Taihei were freed from their prison as well. The plum was drilled." He avoided Hikideshi's gaze. "I dealt with them."

Hikideshi was quiet for a moment. "I'll have Ryouta to look into it. It may be he'll find something." He studied Kimihiro, a slight frown of concern creasing his forehead. "Should I prepare something?"

Hikideshi could see what state he was in. But Kimihiro didn't feel like drinking any of Hikideshi's concoctions. He rubbed at his right temple. "I think I'll retire." His bed was a tempting image in his mind. One he wasn't inclined to resist. "I just need some rest."

Hikideshi bowed. "Call me if you need anything, my lord." He had sensed his master's need to have some space and didn't offer to accompany him.

Kimihiro smiled faintly in acknowledgement and let himself out.

For a moment he simply stood in the corridor, staring blankly at the rich runner underfoot. Haruka had gone to the Palace to bolster the wards of the entire city. But now the dosojin he had set to watch his own Quarter were ailing. It was almost as if Haruka's power had been diverted to some other purpose. He reached instinctively for his watch.

Something unexpected met his fingers. Soft and warm.

Kimihiro frowned and pulled it out. He blinked when he saw the object sitting on his palm. It was a violet. A dark blue violet. A vibrant cluster of dusky petals on a thin stem that looked so fragile it might snap.

Not just affection but love.

Doumeki's actions that day flashed through his mind as he started down the corridor. He hadn't given up on his courting. If anything he only seemed more determined. And it looked like it had gotten worse if he was slipping things into Kimihiro's pockets.

Kimihiro's steps slowed. It made him uneasy. Doumeki wasn't someone who stopped until he got what he wanted. He appeared quiet and laidback but Kimihiro knew him well enough to know it wasn't the truth. Doumeki was just like his power, hot magma under the unassuming crust. And to have all that attention directed at him...Kimihiro flexed the fingers of his left hand. Doumeki hadn't let go through the entire carriage ride. It was only when they had arrived and the footman opened the carriage door that he had reluctantly disengaged.

Despite his protests Kimihiro hadn't really minded. Despite the distraction it had proved - it had been difficult to avoid certain thoughts with Doumeki so close, Kimihiro had found much to his chagrin - the act of handholding wasn't a daunting one. It was the knowledge of what Doumeki would do if he had what he believed was permission that had Kimihiro worrying. If Doumeki had any encouragement he was likely to push on in his futile courtship.

And for Doumeki - who openly declared that he didn't care about his reputation - that could only be disastrous. Kimihiro had no social standing to speak of - his name had been dragged through the mud so often, layers of scandal had been forever linked to his name. But it was different for Doumeki. His name was currency he needed.

The way the conversation had gone with Lady Heath was a potent example of how his involvement was undermining Doumeki's standing. And he knew how it would spread if anyone knew of Doumeki's attempts to court him.

Courting. His lips pursed. The mere thought of a prince courting a lord was idiotic. But typical of Doumeki. Doumeki _was_ an idiot.

Kimihiro stared down at the violet resting on his palm.

Whatever Doumeki might think, Kimihiro knew what the small flower meant. He had to keep on his guard and remain watchful.

~x~X~x~

**Dark water rippled with each impact of the pink petals that settled on the pond's surface. They dotted the black plane, sending out small ripples.**

**"Cassandra has always been convinced that the Southern Ward is inferior." Haruka stared out across the pond, his arms looped loosely across his chest, cigarette held loosely between two of his fingers. "She won't be persuaded by either of you."**

**Doumeki squashed the urge to comment that information would have been more useful before they had gone to the Eastern Ward. "And Lord Ishiyama?"**

**"Takeshi's a warrior." The older man's gaze didn't waver from the rippling water. "If he sees a threat, he'll act on it." **

**That wasn't particularly reassuring. Especially in the light of what Lady Heath had said that afternoon. "Lady Heath suggested the end of the Watanuki line would end the threat." He was still angry at the suggestion.**

**Haruka finally turned to look at him. As the silence stretched out, Doumeki had the sudden irrational fear that his grandfather would agree with the Eastern Keeper.**

**"I've heard that suggestion before." Haruka didn't look pleased. "It was raised after Kaito and Kokoro had returned. The wards were being tested and there was panic in some quarters." Haruka studied his cigarette, the smoke rising from it in thin coils.**

**For a second Doumeki's thoughts were blank. And then realization was setting in like a rising tide of ice. "Are you saying-" **

**Haruka hadn't taken his gaze off the thin stream of rising smoke. "Kaito and Kokoro had heard of a disturbance. Something that caused them to cut short their journey to the city. Otherwise they would never have been at the crossroads that day." The cigarette turned slowly between his fingers. "The timing suggests more than coincidence." He glanced up at Doumeki. "If Kimihiro suspects, he hasn't said anything."**

**It was hard to say if Kimihiro knew or not. He hadn't voiced any suspicions but that didn't mean anything. Kimihiro had openly admitted that he wasn't saying all he knew. Doumeki flexed the fingers of his right hand, preventing them from fisting. If someone had thought that once and now Kimihiro was the last of the Watanuki bloodline- "Did you find out who it was?"**

**Haruka shook his head. "They covered their tracks well."**

**The older man was being unusually forthcoming. "The Ame-Warashi had mentioned a bargain. Why is the Watanuki line so important?" **

**Haruka glanced at him and smiled, a slight change of expression that transformed his entire face. "When the capital was built there was an agreement between the architect of the city and the elementals that possessed territory within its bounds."**

**"Clow." Doumeki was beginning to see the connections.**

**Haruka nodded. "It was an agreement of mutual protection." He stared out at the dark lake, its surface broken with small ripples as the cherry petals continued to shed. "The Watanuki line served as the mediators between the first and second world."**

**"And so Kimihiro-"**

**"-is essentially responsible for keeping the human side of the equation in check." The cigarette lifted to Haruka's lips. **

**"By himself?" It was a ridiculous idea. And one that Kimihiro seemed to have taken to heart.**

**"No." Smoke rose in a thickening line. "The Four Keepers and the second lines are meant to provide support." His voice softened. "Cassandra's refusal would have risked her replacement in the past. But times have changed." **

**It put things into perspective. Kimihiro's one man crusade. His authority with the other seconds lines. The Ame-Warashi's treatment of him as an equal.**

**Haruka smiled around his cigarette. "Don't let him give you any excuses about the difference of rank." His smile widened. "Which he'll try to do."**

**It was somewhat irritating that Haruka knew Kimihiro so well. Though, Doumeki did appreciate the advantage it gave him.**

**Doumeki glanced around them. At the grassy slope, the stone bench sheltered by the weeping cherry tree with its thinning blossoms. The pond that lay dark in front of them. An exact copy of the garden at the Southern Ward.**

**Where Haruka **_**hadn't**_** died. **

**Doumeki asked the question that he had been waiting to ask ever since he had read the report on Haruka's death. "Why were you at the palace that night?"**

**Haruka stopped smoking. He pulled the cigarette from his lips and turned around to face Doumeki, his face grave. "Tracing the source of a disturbance."**

Doumeki's eyes snapped open. He pushed back the covers and slipped from his bed, heading towards the glass doors looking out onto the garden. He slid one open and stood in the channel of cold air that immediately rushed into the room. Doumeki closed his eyes to better feel the cool air. Hoping that it would help sort out his thoughts.

A disturbance. Had it been a lure to lead Haruka to his death? Doumeki turned his head. The broken arrow shaft sat on the side table next to his bed, barely visible in the dark room. Had the unofficial report hidden things as well? Had it been murder?

Or was his grandfather trying to tell him something about the state of the palace? His gaze turned back to the garden, past the dormant cherry tree on the slope overlooking the pond. To the north. The palace where he had been born. Where his mother ruled.

His mother.

Doumeki's hand fisted in the fabric of his samue. He didn't know what to think anymore. He had made the decision to split with his mother's policies, to follow his own even if it meant direct opposition. But the thought that she might be under threat in some way threatened to undermine the wall of indifference he had been trying to erect.

Doumeki reached out and slid the door shut, cutting off the cold air. He walked back over to the bed and picked up the broken arrow from the side table. It was cool to the touch.

Arrow in hand, he started out of the room, heading towards his study. He wouldn't be able to get to sleep and he might as well work on the paperwork that had started to pile up. With the outings he went on with Kimihiro added to his usual duties, he had less time to attend to it. Doumeki wanted to get as much of it done as he could in the time he had. He suspected it would only get worse from here on.

~x~X~x~

* * *

Most likely. Doumeki's going to be very busy in the months ahead. He's going to have to wade back into court now that he's got something he wants to achieve.

You can see now why this took so long (aside from my editing addiction XD). We're really getting into the thick of it now. The politics have well and truly started to kick in: the new edicts, Akio's fury, Lady Heath's refusal and Doumeki's manoeuvring. Not to mention Lord Tatsuya and his band of followers (they're an interesting bunch). And then there's the second world. The minashiitori is only the start of it. But least Doumeki's courting is going well :D Though I can't guarantee he'll be in one piece when he braves that cane XD

The next instalment shall be Box Seat. I'd like to have it up in a month but it might take longer. It should at least be up before Christmas.


	92. Box Seat I

**REVIEWS:**

**Mesonoxian: ** (82): Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it! :D (91) Thank you! I do my best ;D

**HAIRI:** XD I'm glad I could help ;D

**Kingston:** :D SE is different. You always get the next chunk at once, whether it's one chapter or ten. All of them? that would keep you occupied for a while XD I'm glad you liked what you found :D *fond smile* Pervert!Doumeki is definitely one of my favourites. LOL! Oh, I'm pretty hard to kill. I'm made to last so I think you're safe XD (it all makes perfect sense to me XD) Ah. Actually it's more than one book. You'd be interested in that would you? Hmmm...

**gali-o-:** 84) I suppose he is. I can't take credit for the house but I will for my share XD Fun, isn't it? XD Old ettiquette books at first. But it's available in lots of places if you look for it.  
90) So it would seem. It's a complicated situation, and not all of it is clear as yet. You can ask. *evil grin* But that won't mean I'll grant it.

**AppleIcedxTea:** :D Ohh, what a wonderful idea. It would have been an awesome twist XD But I think we can all live witht he way things are :) :D

**Black Apple:** Thank you! :D I'm glad you enjoyed it :D Oh dear XDD I don't know if that's something you should be thanking me for ^^;; Ahahaha. You've got a bit of wriggling before you, then XD That's Doumeki for you XD She does. She was off scene in the very first chapter. It's possible. It depends on how certain events play out :)

: Not until now XD Goodness. I mustn't disappoint them any longer. I hope you enjoy the next piece as much as you've enjoyed the rest ;D

**phommabouth:** Thank you! :D I'm glad you're enjoying the ride. Unfortunately I didn't manage to finish it in time. I was living Tokyo for a while and only recently have I gotten back to my full resources.

**Kiwi:** Hello my dear! :D My fault is it? XD That would do it XD That's pretty much what I wanted it to be. Thank you! :D Might as well share the knowledge :) It takes more than a few simple name changes. Everything belonging to CLAMP has to be removed. And with diferent characters, there are different motivations. Reactions are diferent and the story line changes. *amused* It is a novel, though. Several actually. I'm looking at publishing options. I'm glad you're enjoying it ;D And I hope you enjoy the next part.

**letmeup:** That good eh? XD That's a relief XD Have a good rest ;D *wry smile* Terribly easy thing to do.

**medtechwriter:** Good thing, it's in two places XD I couldn't get 'flakedice' at , so I had to change a letter. *shrug* Better than an entirely different name. *amused* Oh, it's a pretty good assessment. True, honesty does count for something. *wry smile* No, she's not worried about expressing her opinions. I didn't put her in there for you to hate, but if it works for you, I suppose that's okay. My poor Alastaire XD I think you've already read it XD It does, funnily enough XD

**Join Tsai's Mr Q:** 79) Thanks. I'm pretty proud of that transition, myself ;) Hikideshi is a mean, mean man XD He gives nudges now and then. Control is too strong a world. If anything it's the other way around. Doesn't everyone wish that for those they care? :D I'm so happy to hear that! Hikideshi is one of my favourite children XD

**Jolin Tsai's Dancing Diva:** 91) XD I can definitely see where you're going. No matter how I try, there's way too much innuendo in this fic XD LOL. I'm happy to take the blame, then ;D

**LadyLuria:** And in need of another hit? XD I believe that if you're going to do something, you should do it well. There's not much point otherwise. I think I can manage that ;D I hope you enjoy how it progresses. 

* * *

AN: I hope you all took my advice and got back up to speed XD For those who didn't (tsk, naughty you) we left Kimihiro Doumeki after long day that involved a clash with Doumeki's mother (okay, it was the day before), an interupted breakfast, a request for help, flowers XD, groping, some supernatural incidents *vague wave*, a public show (for the supernatural and the mundane), meeting new friends, meeting old enemies, an interesting walk through a forest, some verbal vitriol and the making of new resolutions. What a busy day XD

We now rejoin them a few days later (you don't get to see the antique store, alas. But not much happened. No leads. Just frustration and some ill-advised attempts by Doumeki to buy something for Kimihiro XD...*giggles* Okay, maybe I might write it up later. I do love that bit). So here we go my dears, the next long-awaited chunk (thank pyrefly fayth for poking me with a _lovely_ carrot XD) of Lord & Prince. Enjoy ;D

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**BOX SEAT**

**I**

Sunlight poured into the room, casting gold over the small dark green shoots in the window sill planter. It picked up the pale pink of the delicate cherry blossoms painted on the side of the porcelain vase sitting on the bedside table.

Kimihiro grimaced as he levered himself up on one arm. It might not have been the wisest decision to let Hikideshi choose where to place it. Now he woke to the sight of the vase every morning, making Doumeki one of his first thoughts for the day.

He scowled. He'd thought of moving it several times but in the end he hadn't. Despite Doumeki's motives, the gift was sincere. Kimihiro hadn't received many gifts and he appreciated the gesture. Even if there were ulterior motives.

Kimihiro ran a hand through his hair. Courting. He'd never been on the receiving end before. Not seriously.

He glanced at the vase, wondering if Doumeki realized how symbolically loaded it was. But if he knew about court flower language, he must.

A warbler perched on cherry blossoms. It could be interpreted in several ways but there was one reading that stood out like the blossoms on their bare branches. _ Happiness and hope found by joining with the Yamoto line_.

Kimihiro wished it was that simple-

He froze. Eyes wide and staring sightlessly at the vase.

Kimihiro abruptly pulled himself free from the bedclothes and made his way to the wardrobe, his gaze averted from the vase. He flung open the doors, surveying the garments that hung on their hangers. He had urgent matters to attend to. He didn't have time for useless speculation.

~x~X~x~

A doll sat on the desk. It was a wretched thing, sewn together from scraps of material and with strands of horse hair sprouting from its head. Someone had clumsily braided the horse hair, tying the ends with thin scraps of ribbon that hung forlornly over the lumpy body. The doll had been stuffed with bran and over time the makeshift stuffing had shifted, gathering in the limbs and head.

But for all the poor materials, care had gone into its creation. The stitches that joined the multicoloured fabrics were small and neat. The unmatched buttons used for eyes had clearly been scrounged from old garments but they had been carefully positioned so the doll looked only slightly startled instead of freakish. A small mouth had been stitched in red thread, a small curve that gave the doll a sweet smile.

The little girl who lost it had been delighted to get it back. But unfortunately it wasn't just the doll that she'd received.

Kimihiro turned the doll over the with the silver sugar tongs he'd borrowed from the tea service. It flopped over limply, the awkward braids trailing over its torso. But even with the obscuring strands, he could see the stitching along the back was different, slightly larger and less neat. "At least it wasn't in the head," he murmured softly, causing Ryuu to shift on his shoulder. If it had been, the doll would have been ruined when he tried to find the cursed fragment inside.

He wanted to preserve the doll as much as he could. While it had caused so much damage, it was still a treasured possession. Kimihiro had some skill with needle and thread but he wasn't confident of returning the doll to its previous condition if he had to pull it apart entirely.

The doll had been sent to him in a small box lined with saikai branches. It was a rudimentary sealing but the best that could be achieved under the circumstances. The sender had been woman from the small residential area crammed between the docks and the merchant district. Her granddaughter had suddenly fallen sick. And it hadn't taken long for the old woman to suspect the sudden illness.

Her daughter's husband had recently been under pressure to sell the house they lived in. Several times there had been threats directed not only at her son but the other members of the family. She had thought nothing of it when her granddaughter's doll went missing and then was found again. Her suspicions had been aroused when she found out that a stranger had found the doll and come to the house to return it to the girl. And it had been that very night her granddaughter had fallen ill.

She had become certain the men who wanted the house were responsible when they returned, offering money for the house. Money that would be needed to get her granddaughter the treatment she needed.

The woman had had sent the doll to the Watanuki estate in hopes that he could find out what had happened.

Kimihiro had his own suspicions about what was causing the girl's illness.

He studied the rougher stitching, trying to determine how to proceed. But his reach for the doll was suddenly forestalled.

Ryuu ran down his arm, jumping off his wrist to land on the table next to the doll. The construct studied the toy for a moment, head tilted to one side, then half climbed up on it, one foot planting firmly on the lumpy torso, the other lifted as it hooked one of the threads with a curved claw. It gave easily with a dull snapping sound and the dragon moved onto the next. Soon the doll's back was open to reveal the pale meal that filled it. Ryuu peered down into the opening then suddenly darted back, putting some distance between itself and the doll.

Kimihiro frowned. He set aside the sugar tongs and picked up the tweezers he had found among his mother's things. They were only gold-tipped but it was the best he had been able to find. He carefully inserted the tweezers' tips into the open seam and started pushing aside the bran, searching for anything that was out of the ordinary. Ryuu's reaction meant it was there; the problem now was just locating it.

It was several long minutes until he found it. He was pushing aside some of the bran in the doll's shoulder when he saw a tiny black tendril snaking through the small fragments. Kimihiro's frown deepened as he sorted through the bran, tracing the tendril back to its source. Several other thin rootlets appeared and finally he had uncovered the heart of the twisted growth.

It was a small seed. Or at least it had been. Now it was grossly swollen, as if the doll possessed some cancerous organ which had grown several times its original size. It lay among the bran like some deadly weed that had sprouted.

Kimihiro's mouth thinned into a grim line. A tanegai. An unnatural growth that fed on its host. The doll would have acted as a substitute, a conduit to the girl who clutched it. And as the child weakened, the seed would grow. Grow until it had developed spores which would then be inhaled. In a weakened body, they would then be able to grow anew, invading true flesh and blood. A victim would eventually die but not before a slow and tortuous decline.

He closed the tweezers on the sprouting seed. Smoke erupted at the touch of gold but Kimihiro simply held his breath as he drew the tanegai from the bran. The thin black roots suddenly flexed, trying to grip onto the bran they were being pulled from. Kimihiro pulled it from the doll before they could a grip on the doll itself.

The little roots lashed through the air like tiny angry arms. The thick black smoke diverted around the gold tips of the tweezers and started curling up around the metal towards his fingers.

Ryuu surged up from the desk, teeth closing on the roots and pulling the seed free from the tweezers. Soon the tanegai had vanished down the construct's throat. There was a sharp pull, a brief flash of pain through his chest as the construct drew more power, and then the tanegai was destroyed in the construct's body.

Kimihiro set the tweezers down with slightly shaking fingers, staring at the doll. It had been a deliberate casting, a curse laid for one purpose. Someone had cold-blooded planted the tanegai within the doll and then set the primed toy back into the child's hands.

A practitioner. One of the hundreds in the city that called themselves such. But this one had power and knowledge. And used both without conscience to achieve his aims. A child's life as leverage to entice a man to sell his home.

Kimihiro stared sightlessly out the window. He had been aware of the so called practitioners that had popped up in the city. There had always been charlatans and conmen who pretended to have power they didn't possess. But it wasn't until the festivals had ended and those who had been linked closely to the shrines had been discredited that the desperate had gone to seek the new practitioners in numbers. And that had only led to their increase.

As Keeper Haruka had always been the one to deal with them. He had the power and authority to mete out the proper punishment for those who overstepped the invisible lines of acceptability. After Haruka had died Kimihiro had done what he could but there was only so much he could achieve in a quarter where he had no real authority. And now it was as if they had a free run of the city.

Worse still, their services had turned to darker paths.

Tanegai weren't common. The effort and skill required to create them meant they were out of the reach of most. Kimihiro doubted if any of the 'new' practitioners in the city had even heard of them.

To find one now meant one of two things. Either a skilled practitioner who had kept themselves hidden until now. Or – images of knotted hair and bone flashed through his mind – someone had gotten their hands on a manual.

_Radford_ had gotten his hands on one. And now there was possibly another.

Coincidence? There was no such thing as coincidence.

Kimihiro's eyes darkened as he stared at the gutted doll. An attempt to kill. It was beyond snake oil and powerless charms. Something had to be done.

A soft click had his attention snapping to the door.

Hikideshi slipped into the room, closing the door quietly behind him.

Kimihiro glanced up at him expectantly as the butler stopped beside his chair.

Hikideshi glanced at the doll, open and displaying its rough stuffing. "You will tell His Grace?"

"I have little choice." Doumeki was now the Southern Ward's Keeper and duty was his. "At least Taiki and the others should have been reinstated by now. They should be able to help bring the practitioners in the quarter under control."

"No doubt." There was something in Hikideshi's voice, a note of caution, which made Kimihiro glance at him sharply.

But Hikideshi ignored the look. He reached into a pocket and withdrew several letters. "These were delivered early this morning."

Kimihiro accepted the missives, glancing over the wax seals. Pale blue wax with a dove perched on branches of oak leaves. Elizabeth. The other had a slightly misshapen blob of green wax impressed with a stylized branch of wisteria over water. Lady Browning.

Kimihiro frowned and accepted the letter opener Hikideshi handed him. He cut through the seal and unfolded the missive.  
_  
__We can visit mid afternoon. I have informed His Highness._

The message was brief. But with Lady Browning that tended to be a necessity. She could only hold her concentration on things in the material world for a brief time.

Kimihiro handed the letter to Hikideshi who read it with a brief sweep of his eyes. "It's been a long time since Lady Browning visited the estate." He carefully refolded the letter. "It will be good to see her within these walls once more."

He hadn't been the only one to endure an exile at the estate. Kimihiro lowered his eyes, overcome with sudden guilt. It had been much worse for Hikideshi.

Hikideshi set the letter on the desk, catching his gaze. "I only hope that you will entertain more guests in future." His black eyes slid sideways, glinting with suppressed humour. "His Grace seems a good influence in that regard."

A good influence. Kimihiro's mouth twitched. He didn't think Doumeki really qualified for that.

He picked up the other letter and carefully cut the wax before unfolding it. Lady Dexter's graceful hand met his gaze, erasing the last lingering traces of his unease.

_Dear Kimihiro,__  
__  
__I hope this letter finds you well. Despite the mild winter we have experienced so far, it is easy for those of strong constitution to succumb to the unfortunate discomforts of winter. Even I have to admit to a few days where the seasonal sniffles had me in bed. _

_Tallis, however, has rallied remarkably. Though easily tired - something I have occasion to tease him about when he has slept so much of the previous years away - he has much improved. Just the other day he expressed a wish to walk in the garden. I'm determined to make the best of recent weather and start his rehabilitation by walking the grounds. Daily constitutionals are meant to help recovery from illness. And Tallis always enjoyed the grounds of our country estate._

_The garden is quite bare at the moment but the quinces are starting to bloom. We have several hedges of them and they are quite spectacular when they are in flower. They're like splashes of red ink on the end of black brushes at the moment but within a week or two there will be so many flowers that they'll become a scarlet wall._ Elizabeth's enthusiasm was barely contained in the elegant loops of her letters. _A very welcome source of colour in the garden at this time of year!_

_And a reminder of what is to come. The quinces are always first and it is a sure sign that the plums will soon start to bud. Patrick has informed me that they should be in flower within a few weeks. As a consequence, I will be bringing forward the date of the plum viewing in an invitation for afternoon tea. Weather permitting, there will be a fine display when you visit. _

_I've told Tallis about the joy your friendship had provides and the many kindnesses you and His Highness have shown me and he looks forward to the prospect as much as I do. He is eager to meet with the gentlemen who have treated me so kindly. _

The next words were slightly unsteady, more hesitantly penned.  
_  
__But I must ask your advice on the manner of my invitation. Do you think it would be presumptuous of me to send an invitation directly to His Highness? I ask you, who know His Highness better than I, whether it would be acceptable._

Doumeki of all people could hardly take offence at an invitation to afternoon tea at Elizabeth's estates. Not when he visited people repeatedly _without_ invitation.

_I look forward to seeing you and His Highness again. _

_Yours Sincerely,_

_Elizabeth._

_PS. Hikideshi mentioned that the leaves of your Stephanotis were starting to turn yellow. I have consulted Patrick on the matter and he tells me it is a sign of nitrogen deficiency. A nitrogen-rich fertilizer should have them perking up once more. I hope it will help rejuvenate the Stephanotis in time for spring and you will have a glorious display of new blooms. _

Just how long had they been talking that time Elizabeth had visited? But Kimihiro's exasperation didn't last long. He couldn't blame either of them. Elizabeth was eager to talk to everyone and Hikideshi didn't have much chance to converse with anyone outside the estates. He passed the letter to Hikideshi.

The butler raised an eyebrow but took the missive. He was silent for a moment as he read but a slight smile was on his lips as he finished. "Perhaps there will be an opportunity to invite Lord and Lady Dexter for an evening when the weather improves."

Kimihiro cast him a glance. He seemed to recall that Hikideshi had been the one to suggest that Doumeki be invited over for dinner the first time and now it was a regular occurrence.

Not that he wouldn't enjoy Elizabeth's company - it was the consequences that he was afraid of. He didn't want their friendship to be the cause of any trouble to her.

But Hikideshi wasn't waiting for an answer. Having planted the idea, he was content to let it germinate.

Kimihiro suppressed a sigh. It _would_ be rude to visit and then not give a reciprocal invitation. "If Lord and Lady Dexter are to visit, I would want the estate's safety secured." And it wasn't at the moment. Not for someone like Elizabeth who was likely to leave the safety of the road and mansion to examine a flower or plant that had caught her eye.

Hikideshi's faint smile became more evident. "I am certain something can be arranged."

He'd probably been planning something alone those lines since the unicorn guarding the gates had been damaged. Kimihiro frowned and got up from the table, heading to the writing desk set near the window.

In the beginning there hadn't been many spirits within the estates. Or at least not many large ones. He sat, searching for the appropriate materials to write a reply. But more had slipped through, progressively stronger and more malign. Most came for him but there had already been a few attempts where spirits, frustrated by the mansion's defences, had tried to attach themselves to the people who had come to the estate for help. They had failed, the channelling power of the drive thwarting their efforts, but Kimihiro was aware of the growing danger. Too many and even the road would fail.

But it would be risky to thin the supernatural invaders. It would involve his tenants braving the intruders and putting themselves in harm's way. He didn't like it but he knew it would only get worse if nothing was done. And Hikideshi, who had held the estate for centuries, against hundreds of incursions, knew what he was doing. He wouldn't risk the lives of those under his protection.

Kimihiro knew all this, but he still didn't like the idea.

He set a blank piece of writing paper on the desk and set pen to paper.

_Dear Elizabeth, _

_I am relieved to hear that you have recovered from the season's maladies. You can be assured of my own current good health. Good fortune and Hikideshi's watchfulness- _Kimihiro's lips twitched as he recalled the blankets draped over his shoulders, the cups of hot tea that had appeared at his elbow. Spirits or illness, Hikideshi was a formidable opponent._ -has meant we have survived the worst of winter's weather unscathed._

_Lord Dexter's continuing recovery gladdens my heart. I am certain that his strength with increase apace with the prospect of warmer weather._

Kimihiro dipped the pen into the inkwell, carefully wiping away the excess ink on the edge.

_I am pleased to accept your kind invitation and urge you to send a personal invitation to the Southern Ward. His Highness is not one to adhere to formality at the cost of an opportunity to visit an acquaintance._ That was an understatement. Kimihiro rather doubted that Doumeki bothered with formality unless he had to. _ I am sure your invitation will be enough, but I will add my voice to yours in hope to persuade him._

There was enough notice to secure the date in Doumeki's busy schedule. Though Doumeki didn't seem to have any problem in dropping by regularly, despite his duties. If there was a chance that he could pursue his courtship, Doumeki was there. Kimihiro suspected that he wouldn't want to miss an opportunity like this one either.

Now _that_ was a disturbing thought.

_You may be assured that I, no matter His Highness' reply, am delighted to be invited. I look forward to seeing both you and Lord Dexter again. And to visiting the gardens you have told me so much about. _

_I wish you both the best of health._

_Yours Sincerely, _

_Kimihiro._

He placed the pen back in its stand and shut the cap of the inkwell. Sand was sprinkled over the ink to dry and then he was folding the missive, slipping it in an envelope and affixing his seal in the dark blue wax. He looked up, starting to hand the letter to Hikideshi, only to stop.

Hikideshi was facing south, a faint frown creasing his forehead.

Kimihiro set aside the letter, rising from his chair. "What is it?"

The butler was silent for a moment and Kimihiro's concern turned into alarm. Hikideshi hardly ever showed worry and when he did-

"An echo." Hikideshi's frown had lightened, giving him a faintly puzzled expression.

Kimihiro glanced to the south, staring at the painting that hung next to the door. "Them?" He couldn't sense anything beyond the estate's boundaries.

Hikideshi's eyes slid to him. "No." It was definite. "It was almost like His Grace."

Kimihiro frowned at the painting. Doumeki was in the Southern Ward. And for Hikideshi to feel something-

"Can you tell more than that?" There might be another exorcist out there. And if there was, they were in danger.

From the look on Hikideshi's face, he'd been thinking the same thing. "It was faint, either far away or weak." He smiled faintly at Kimihiro. "Within the bounds of the Empire."

Within- He hadn't thought Hikideshi had been able to sense that much. He was linked into the protections of the city and thus that of the empire, but to think that he might be able to reach the borders- "Have you-" Kimihiro hesitated, not sure whether he should ask.

"I have had a long time to get used to my circumstances." Hikideshi's smile widened, for a moment perilously close to a grin. "I haven't wasted a moment."

Kimihiro blinked.

Hikideshi leaned down and retrieved the letter from the desk. "I'll see that this is delivered by the end of the day."

Kimihiro nodded in thanks, still somewhat shocked by the revelation. He walked back to the table. The doll still lay on its surface. Ryuu sat on the table next to the tweezers, peering at the tool curiously.

Kimihiro stared down at the limp doll, its stuffing exposed in mimicry of a fatal wound. It looked ready for the trash man, a pitiful form of scrounged rags and wheat fragments.

But it was more to the little girl who owned it.

"Hikideshi." Kimihiro stopped the butler before he could leave the room.

If he was going to sew up the seam, he might as well add some more stuffing. "Do we have any bran?"

Hikideshi's eyes fell on the doll and he suddenly smiled. "I believe so."

~x~X~x~


	93. Box Seat II

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**BOX SEAT**

**II**

A cold breeze blew through the open doors of the shrine, fluttering the white paper strips dangling from the shimenawa stretched out over the doorway. The lanterns hanging from the roof beams swayed, casting shadows over the snarling dragon painted across the roof and giving it the illusion of movement. The thin lines of smoke rising from the lit incense bent sideways, a horizontal stream.

Doumeki was unmoved by the cold air ruffling his hair. He simply sat, eyes closed. There was the small squeak of the lantern, iron on iron as it swayed. A soft scrape as a branch moved across the side of the shrine. A warbler was calling from a tree several paces away to his left and there was a quiet splash as something surfaced in the pond.

But loudest of all was the thrum of power, the network of lines that flowed through everything. The feel of the Ward itself.

It was similar to the dosojin he had set to a certain extent. He could feel the central node of power flowing up from the spring at the heart of the Ward, the lines of power that fed into it from the outer enclosures and radiated out beyond the walls. But the similarity ended at the basic structure. The Southern Ward was vast, a powerful flow of power that resembled the waters of a strong river.

Now Doumeki was aware of the invisible current, it was hard to believe he had been oblivious to it for so long. But despite its strength, the lines of power were surprisingly elusive. He could feel them but only to the degree that they were there. Their fluctuations and the smaller branches which shot off from the main lines were hard to grasp. Measuring their strength was like throwing a weighted line into a river to test the depth of the water only to have the force of the current pull it downstream before it could hit bottom.

But Doumeki patiently observed the lines, trying to take measurements as best he could. He had only recently come across the ability to sense them and it was a skill that he was determined to refine. It would only take time.

Doumeki carefully looked over each of the lines, checking them before pulling his consciousness away from the invisible lattice that flowed out around him. He opened his eyes, focusing on the material world: the tatami beneath him, the samue flapping in the breeze he had ignored before. The lines were still a faint humming rush beneath the shrine but a distant one that was fading into the background of the gardens.

Doumeki slowly stood and walked out of the shrine to stand on the veranda. The wind teased his hair and clothes, flapping the fabric around his legs, but he ignored it. It wasn't particularly cold for the time of year.

There had been ominous silence from his mother. The carefully phrased letter he'd sent had gotten a reply not from Her Majesty but the Minister of Works, couched in as carefully formal language as his had been. There had been no royal writ for work to be carried out in the Southern Ward and Lord Inaba was very interested to discover the source of what could only be a forged royal document.

Doumeki couldn't help being relieved, disturbing as the news was. Even if his mother disapproved of his actions, she hadn't acted against him. It meant more than he thought it would. Though Doumeki was prepared to defy her, he didn't enjoy it.

Silence was something he was used to. There had been times his actions had so incensed his mother that she had been unable to express her displeasure. In some ways, it had been the worst reaction of all. While Doumeki didn't have to endure her sharp words, he was aware of the brooding presence in her apartments. The hushed, almost frightened, attitude of the servants.

When his mother had finally come to speak to him, it had almost been a relief to hear the cold precise commands she issued.

There hadn't been any room for negotiation after that. As crown prince, Doumeki was dependant on his mother and had no power of his own to oppose her.

But he was now Keeper of the Southern Ward. And his mother's commands were not something he had bow to anymore. No doubt some would see his actions as rebellious, even treasonous, but Doumeki was convinced of his course. Even more so after Lord Inaba's reply.

His mother had always kept a tight grip on the court and her ministers. But that someone had forged a royal writ suggested that grip was slipping. There was a time when no one would have dared oppose her. But now _someone_ was.

The timing was suspicious. And it wasn't just coincidence the order of works had been aimed at the Southern Quarter after Doumeki had made his association with Kimihiro known.

Doumeki's eyes narrowed as he stared down at the pond. Whether it was meant to drive a wedge between him and his mother or simply to sabotage the Southern Quarter was uncertain. But the implications weren't. Supernatural threats were not the only ones he had to worry about.

A ripple started, a sharp vee across the pond. One of the koi swimming just under the surface. He couldn't see it but its effect on the water was clear enough.

Doumeki slid his feet into his geta and started back towards the household, treading the flat mossy stones that trailed through the grass. Opposition was to be expected. He just hadn't expected it so soon.

But that it had, told him just what sort of opponent he was up against.

A bird took flight, darting across the path. Doumeki followed it with his eyes as it flew across the pond. A warbler. Just like the one painted on the vase he had given Kimihiro.

A small smile crossed Doumeki's lips as he continued down the path. Within the hour he would be at Kimihiro's table.

He had been enjoying the last few days. Courting Kimihiro had been as entertaining as Doumeki had expected it to be. And just as difficult. It was a delicate balance of demonstrating his feelings and not spooking Kimihiro.

Doumeki was honest enough to admit that delicacy wasn't one of his strong points. But Kimihiro was proving less immune to Doumeki's efforts. While the involuntary twitches and sharp words had increased, there was none of the forceful rejection Doumeki had been half-expecting. Kimihiro didn't try to avoid him as much as his actions. Today's meeting might have been for a discussion of their next moves but it _had_ been at Kimihiro's invitation.

Doumeki had high hopes for lunch.

He started walking a little faster.

Several minutes later, Doumeki was leaving the gardens that surrounded the heart of the Ward. As he drew close to the gate leading to the main household, his steps slowed. One of the gardeners was waiting for him.

"Your Highness." The man gave a deep bow. "Riku sent me to inform you there's a guest waiting in the inner garden."

A guest. Doumeki frowned. If it had been anyone he wanted to see, Riku would have said who it was.

"Thanks." He dismissed the man with a nod.

The man bowed again and left.

Doumeki continued along the path. Trying to shake the thread of foreboding that grew with every step.

~x~X~x~

Riku met him at the doors leading to the inner garden. He was wearing a faint frown as he kept an eye on the teahouse.

Doumeki glanced across the verdant expanse of lawn and thick greenery. From this angle he could see the woman who sat at the small table within the teahouse. Lady Hishida. But she wasn't alone. "Ai?"

Riku glanced at him. "Lady Hishida expressed interest in helping some of the unfortunates in the Southern Quarter." He paused, a slight hesitation that someone else might have missed. "Since she seemed genuine in her interest, I asked Ai to tell the lady about her work at the Southern Ward."

Doumeki studied the two women. The priestess in her white haori and scarlet hamaka, seated at the same table as the noblewoman, elegant in a pale blue dress with lace and satin trim. Ai was her usual composed self, her legs tucked up under her chair and hands resting in her lap. But there was a smile on her broad face. And Lady Hishida was leaning forward in her chair, interest evident on her face as she poured some tea into the priestess' cup. "How long have they been talking?"

Riku glanced out at the teahouse. "At least fifteen minutes."

It was mildly surprising. Lady Hishida hadn't expressed interest in the charitable work carried out at the Southern Ward before. Doumeki studied her thoughtfully. Riku at least, judged her interest as genuine.

The question was _why_ she was suddenly interested.

He was due to visit Kimihiro within the hour. Lady Hishida had visited the Ward several times over the last month, the majority of them when he had been absent. But now she was here he had to see her. Doumeki frowned. It didn't leave him much time.

Riku had seen his hesitation. "This came for Your Highness about an hour ago." The aide handed him a small missive, a folded piece of paper rather than a sealed envelope. It looked like something a city messenger would carry but there was a wax seal firmly fixed to the back. A private message.

Doumeki cracked the seal with his thumb and unfolded the letter. A graceful looping hand meet his eye. Careful but abrupt. _Visit postponed until mid afternoon._

There was no salutation and no signature. If it hadn't been for the seal, it would have been impossible to know who the sender was.

Doumeki refolded the missive and handed it back to Riku. "I'll need the carriage in an hour." That should be enough time to resolve what had brought Lady Hishida to the Southern Ward. Lady Browning might not be coming until later but he could still make it time to have lunch with Kimihiro.

A late lunch.

Riku looked at the missive, scanning its contents, then back to him. "Of course, Your Highness." If he had reservations about the situation, Riku wasn't voicing them. He slid the door open to let Doumeki outside.

It was cool but not cold. The tea garden was sheltered from the wind and warmer than the vast gardens around the inner shrine. Doumeki kept his eyes on Lady Hishida as he made his way to the teahouse. At first glance she appeared composed, her richly embroidered skirts tucked neatly around her legs and a pale cornflower shawl covering her shoulders. But as Doumeki drew closer, he could see that something wasn't quite right. There was a tightness around her eyes and mouth that cosmetics couldn't cover.

Doumeki frowned. It was looking like more than a social call.

Ai saw him first. She rose and sank into a deep curtsey, her smile warming. "Your Grace."

"Ai." He nodded and turned to Lady Hishida who had risen, eyes widening and a shade of colour entering her pale cheeks. "Lady Hishida."

"Your Highness." The lady sank into a deep curtsey. "Thank you for seeing me at such late notice."

Doumeki flicked a glance at Ai who gave another smaller curtsey and slipped out of the teahouse.

Lady Hishida didn't seem to notice. Doumeki was aware of her eyes on him as he took the chair Ai had vacated. She caught his eyes on her and flushed, eyes lowering as she concentrated on tucking her skirts around her as she sat once more.

Doumeki's eyes narrowed slightly. It was very different behaviour from her previous bold advances.

"It seems like forever since I last saw you, Your Highness." Her eyes lifted from her skirts, suddenly meeting his gaze directly. "Every time I visit, you are occupied with your duties."

It was hard to tell whether that was a veiled accusation or statement of fact. Either way, it was a reproach. Not that he owed her any explanation for his movements. "I have many responsibilities." More since he had met Kimihiro.

"Yes." Her eyes flickered. "I had no idea that the Southern Ward was so involved with the unfortunates of our community." Her eyes lowered. "My ignorance makes me ashamed."

Doumeki was silent for a moment, slightly taken aback. He hadn't expected this.

But Lady Hishida was continuing. "I would like to help if I can." She suddenly leaned forward one hand reaching across the table to clasp his. Her eyes were fixed on him, a bright pale blue. "Let me help _you_, my lord."

Doumeki looked down at her hand. He started pulling free. "Your concern is admirable. Support of the Southern Ward is always welcome." Though her advances were not.

Her hand tightened on his, refusing to let go. Her pale blue eyes were still fixed on him, bold and direct. "I am not like Lady Fukao." Her voice sharpened as she said the name. "I have no plans to trap you in marriage. I am content to simply be at your side." Her gloved thumb stroked the back of his hand. "My love is for the man not the prince."

Doumeki stared at her. Her words were genuine as far as he could tell. But it was hard to believe. He hardly knew her - at most he would call her an acquaintance. It was difficult to fathom how Lady Hishida had developed such a profound attachment that she felt impelled to pronounce her feelings so boldly.

Like he had with Kimihiro.

Doumeki frowned. That was different. He _knew_ that Kimihiro returned his affections. Even if he wouldn't admit it.

"Lady Hishida."

Her thumb kept moving. "Takako."

"Lady Hishida." Doumeki removed her hand gently but firmly. "I can't return your feelings."

Lady Hishida's hand fell to the table. "You reject me." It was said softly. "I ask nothing of you." Her eyes were bright. "Simply the companionship I can offer you."

Doumeki's wariness engaged. When a member of court continually professed they didn't want anything, it usually meant they did. "I'm not looking for a companion." He'd already found one.

Lady Hishida was pale-skinned and now the colour in her cheeks stood out in sharp contrast. "I have waited a long time, Your Highness." Her hand trembled slightly as she drew it back onto her lap. "You have always been aloof, standing apart from us all. But recently-" Her gaze had lowered but now she looked up. "Recently that has changed. It felt possible to approach you."

It was true. Doumeki hadn't interacted with his mother's court unless he had no choice. He had resented the demands the nobles placed on him, the attempts to influence him for their own ends. He still thought that to some extent but now he was of the mind to use their machinations for _his_ agenda. Since meeting Kimihiro, Doumeki had been drawn back to court once more. But things had changed. He was no longer a figurehead but an active participant.

Doumeki was prepared to use whatever means he could to protect what was his. The Southern Quarter. The city. Lady Hishida presented an avenue to reach some of the very people he would need to help reinstate the festivals. Lady Hishida's father was firmly embedded in the liberal conservative faction of court. Alone, he was of little importance, but he had influence among his peers. Even now, part of Doumeki was coldly calculating how he could use Lady Hishida to achieve his goals.

But there were some things he wouldn't do.

"If you want to lend your support to the Southern Ward, there are several organizations which help people in need." Doumeki kept firmly to the original subject. "Your interest and support are welcome." Even if her affections were not.

Lady Hishida was still. "Your Highness." Her eyes were locked on him. "Is there someone else?"

Doumeki matched her bluntness. "There is." He stood. "I have other business." A servant had appeared - no doubt sent by Riku - and now stood expectantly just outside the teahouse entrance. "Antoine will take you to Ai if you want to discuss the ways you can help."

Lady Hishida's gaze was downcast as she slowly rose and curtsied. "I would like that." Her eyes lifted to his face. "Thank you for your consideration, Your Highness."

Doumeki held her gaze for a moment. There was no resignation in her pale blue eyes. If anything, there was a new determination. "Lady Hishida." He nodded and took his leave.

Riku met him in the garden. "I asked Ai to steer Lady Hishida to some of the more community-based charities."

Those not based within the Southern Ward. Doumeki glanced at him sidelong.

"It might be best if Lady Hishida is at some distance." Riku continued delicately. "Sometimes kindness can be mistaken as encouragement."

Doumeki glanced back at the teahouse. Lady Hishida was following Antoine out of the small building, skirts held up to avoid the long grass edging the stone path. Her head turned and their gazes met.

He looked away. The last thing he needed was for Lady Hishida to think her welcome to the Southern Ward had any ties to his affections. Doumeki frowned. He couldn't turn her away - it was part of his duties to be accessible to all in the Southern Quarter - but he could make it clear that he wasn't _inviting_ her attentions.

"Riku. I'm going to the Watanuki estate for lunch. Have the carriage ready." The Brownings might have postponed the meeting but that didn't mean he couldn't keep the original appointment.

After Lady Hishida's visit, Doumeki was in the mood to spend some time with Kimihiro. He hadn't made much headway in the last few days. Kimihiro regarded each of his gifts with a mixture of suspicion and alarm. Doumeki could be patient but he was determined to make the best of each opportunity.

Riku had a look of resignation on his face. "Will you return in time for dinner?" If there was any disapproval for his prince's choice of associates, he hid it well.

"I'll be late." If he was lucky he might be staying for dinner.

~x~X~x~

Doumeki adjusted his cravat and pulled his coat straight. It was one of his better ones, cut for comfort rather than formality. Something Kimihiro might frown at him for but not really care.

A slight smile bent Doumeki's mouth. Even Kimihiro's testiness had faded in some respects. He no longer made sharp comments about unexpected appearances or unsuitable dress. Exasperation had replaced annoyance. Kimihiro barely even commented when he let familiarity overtake formality.

He suspected Kimihiro had gotten used to him. Might even have appreciated him in some small way. Doumeki had caught him staring, an expression of bemusement and misgiving, when Kimihiro thought he wasn't looking. A strange anger-tinged admiration sometimes when he first stepped through the mansion's door. As if Kimihiro was fighting against _any_ feeling that might have softened him to Doumeki's courting.

Doumeki had started paying attention to his wardrobe, a subtle bid for Kimihiro's attention.

A tactic that was making some headway if the startled look Kimihiro had given him on his last visit was any indication.

His eyes shifted to the small box sitting on the dresser. Whether Kimihiro approved or not, there was nothing he could find fault with this latest gift. Doumeki had enlisted Riku's aid to be sure.

Doumeki tucked the box in his pocket, picked up his gloves from the dresser and headed to the door. He was looking forward to lunch. And not just the meal.

The corridors were quiet, only a few servants going about their duties. They stopped to bow as he approached and Doumeki nodded in acknowledgement.

Riku appeared in the corridor ahead. He stopped when he saw Doumeki then started walking towards him. Each step was quick and purposeful.

Doumeki's eyes narrowed, his own steps slowing.

Riku gave a short bow. "Your Highness. A messenger has just delivered a letter." He held out the thin missive.

Doumeki accepted it and turned it over. He blinked when he saw the seal set on the back of the envelope. "Was there a verbal message?"

Riku shook his head. "Only that it required immediate attention." His voice was low.

Doumeki glanced at him. Riku looked uncommonly sombre. Doumeki slid his finger under the fold of the envelope and cracked the wax seal.

There was a single folded sheet inside. An elegant cream slightly scented with lavender. Doumeki read over the contents, surprise shifting to thoughtful calculation. It was unexpected but it provided an opportunity-

"Should I have the carriage wait?" The look on Riku's face suggested he was suspecting another delay.

"Only as long as it takes to get dressed." Doumeki smiled at the aide's confusion. "I won't be back until late." His smile widened as he walked back to his quarters. Kimihiro wasn't going to like it. But he wouldn't be able to refuse.

~x~X~x~


	94. Box Seat III

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**BOX SEAT**

**III**

Light poured in the high windows, picking up the gold filigree in the cream wallpaper and highlights in the portraits that hung on the far wall. Reflections and small rainbows danced across the table as the light hit the silver platters and crystal glasses. It threw a line over the man seated on the other side of the table, lighting up the small beads of pale purple embroidered flowers that trailed down his arms. The delicate green tendrils that trailed through ghostly gold ripples at the cuffs. Wisteria over water.

"I've been trying to talk to Cassandra but quite frankly it's a waste of time." Lord Browning was apologetic. "She's made it known that she doesn't want to discuss the matter any further."

Kimihiro could imagine. Lady Heath didn't brook defiance easily. He didn't need the unmarked carriage sitting on the drive to know this visit was a risk. "I'll be seeing Lord Ishiyama later in the week with His Highness." The invitation had been cordial despite the fact that Lady Heath must have talked to her Western counterpart.

"Takeshi will want to hear what you have to say." Lord Browning frowned down at his scone. It had barely been touched but the lord hadn't displayed much of an appetite. "Cassandra sent him a letter." He nudged the scone with his knife. "I doubt it cast either you or His Highness in a charitable light."

That had been part of the risk in seeing Lady Heath first. But they would have less of a chance if she'd been the last Keeper they visited. He hadn't wanted to back her into a corner. Kimihiro frowned. Not that it had made much difference in the end.

Lady Browning turned from the painting she had been studying and smiled back at them both. "Takeshi will make up his own mind."

"Takeshi Ishiyama is an honourable man." Hikideshi added. He stood with Lady Browning, her small gloved hand resting in the crook of his elbow. His eyes slid to Kimihiro. "Inclined to testing truth for himself."

Kimihiro met his gaze. He doubted that Hikideshi was simply referring to the current situation.

"You have a good chance." Lord Browning agreed. He set down his knife, the scone untouched. "Even Lord Kuroda has suggested a festival would be the best course of action. And Lord Ishiyama is more inclined to listen to his second line."

More than Lady Heath was hers. Some of the difficulty of being second line to the Eastern Ward was behind those words.

"How is the Eastern Quarter?" Lady Heath might think that her quarter was in order but Kimihiro feared it wasn't so. She wouldn't admit any lack, not him.

"We've been receiving some help from Lord Ellery." Lord Browning took a sip from his cup. "Assistance from the Northern Quarter has been circumspect - Cassandra wouldn't condone it." He sighed. "But the northern Chief Warden has been very understanding of the difficulties."

Kimihiro suspected Lord Ellery's dealings with nobles in the Northern Quarter stood him in good stead. He was likely used to working around the touchy pride of the nobility. "Lord Ellery struck me as a capable man." He wouldn't have entrusted him with the knots of hair at the Northern Ward otherwise.

Lord Browning nodded gravely. "I'm thankful that Kenneth Durham is reasonable and willing to support us." He stared down at his cup. "In some ways it would better if he had a stronger connection with the second world." A faint smile twitched his lips, a brief expression more rueful than amused. "But in Philip's absence, there is no one better suited for the task."

"Griffons." It was spoken somewhat absently. Lady Browning was staring at a small painting as if it was the most interesting thing she had ever seen.

Her husband had turned at her words. A faint frown creased his brow. "The Northern Keeper came to see Lucinda about some guardian statues," Lord Browning clarified.

"He liked the birds." The lady's gaze was fixed on the small study of a branch of plum blossoms. It was a simple ink painting, a few black lines to mark branches and a few pale brush strokes to capture the gentle swell of the fragile petals. "They liked him, too. But Sayuri convinced him to take the griffons as well."

Stone plinths were being erected on the hospital grounds when Kimihiro had last visited Beryl. He had wondered when he saw them but the Northern Keeper had apparently taken his advice to heart. It was doubtful whether the hospital's patrons would appreciate the addition of several guardian statues on the once-immaculate lawns but Kimihiro had the feeling any protests would fall on deaf ears.

"Lucinda said they were the best suited for guarding the holes in the Northern Ward's defences." Lord Browning added quietly. He cast a sidelong look at his wife.

Lady Browning's hand fell back in an aborted reach for the ink painting's frame. She suddenly started walking again, eyes searching the walls for another painting.

Hikideshi patiently walked with her, looking like he was prepared to guide her around the dining room for the rest of her visit.

Despite her distraction, Lucinda knew the qualities of the guardian statues she collected even better than their makers. And she would know which of them Lord Kuroda would be best able to interweave into the Ward's defences.

Kimihiro frowned. The second line of the West had been quiet except to send word that he would be unable to accompany them in their meeting with Lord Ishiyama. His gaze lowered to his plate, falling on the sinuous lines scrolling across the rim. But in the light of circumstances that wasn't unexpected.

"Have you heard from Lady Ellis recently?" He got the occasional letter but they were usually short and to the point. Indications of hotspots over the city.

Lady Browning had stopped walking, looking back at them over her shoulder. "Last week." She frowned, turning to her husband. She suddenly looked uncertain. "I think..."

Lord Browning smiled at her. "It was last week." He turned back to Kimihiro. "Tereza has been in the Northern Quarter investigating some of the practitioners who have set up around the Hub." His forehead creased. "They've been active recently and she's concerned."

"Active?" Hikideshi had paused, Lady Browning still on his arm.

Lord Browning's frown deepened. "They've been increasing their customers. Despite Her Majesty's views, some members of court enjoy consulting what they believe are practitioners." His mouth thinned. "And they tend to involve others in the mess they cause." He glanced at Kimihiro. "Atherton has a new patron. He's become Lady Charleton's live-in practitioner."

Lady Charleton. She had come to visit him nearly three years ago. Asking for something he wouldn't give. And now it looked like she had gone to Atherton.

"She will regret her choice." Lady Browning wasn't staring at the paintings anymore. Her eyes were fixed on Kimihiro.

"Lucinda." Lord Browning was staring at his wife. There was a note of worry in his voice.

But she was unmoved. "We can't help everyone, Arthur." Her voice was gentle, her eyes still fixed on Kimihiro. "People make their own decisions."

Just as he had.

Her husband gave her a wan smile. "I know."

"If we succeed," Kimihiro said quietly, "we will be able to help everyone within the city." Even if few would know it. But it was meant to be that way. The four Keepers and the supporting lines were meant to bear the burden so the rest of the city was free of it.

Hikideshi nodded. "The festivals should alleviate the stress on the Wards. And everything within the city." He guided Lady Browning several more steps along the dining room. "Lord Durham has given his support." His eyes met Kimihiro's. "And His Highness is already acting to gather more allies."

Doumeki was lobbying parishioners. Though how Doumeki managed to find the time with all the visits to _him_ over the last few days, Kimihiro didn't know. Hikideshi's words were meant to be reassuring but they didn't make him feel much better about the situation. He didn't like the idea of simply sitting and waiting for Doumeki to come up with a solution-

Kimihiro frowned. He'd actually thought Doumeki would arrive that morning. At least for lunch. It wasn't like Doumeki to miss a meal.

His frown deepened, annoyance flooding through him. It wasn't normal for Doumeki to miss an opportunity to extend his visits. If anything, Kimihiro had trouble getting rid of him recently. Hints were met with blank stares and suggestions that it was time to leave were usually ignored.

Kimihiro's fingers twitched in his lap. And when he finally left, it was only after one of those disturbing long stares. Just imagining what Doumeki was thinking was enough to make him break out into a cold sweat.

He'd never been nervous around Doumeki before. And certainly not nervous about his absence. It wasn't that he was disappointed. Kimihiro shifted in his chair. He was just slightly concerned. Not much could delay Doumeki-

Lord Browning caught his eye, apparently picking up his discomfort. "You may not have a consensus among Keepers, but you have the support of the second lines."

The second lines had never faltered. Even Lord Kuroda had remained steadfast.

It made him relieved but uneasy as well. The support was welcome but the suggestion of leverage was not. He didn't want anything that smacked of coercion. The best outcome would be a consensus among Keepers. A united front that Her Majesty could not break apart.

But something like that would take time. And time wasn't on their side. If Lord Ishiyama took their side then it was more likely that Lady Heath would capitulate. But if he didn't...

Doumeki seemed inclined to push. Not only had he defied his mother but he had started drawing on political support for the festivals. Lord Tatsuya was just the start. Kimihiro was certain Doumeki was already making moves in other areas. He knew it.

The news he'd had from Ryouta suggested that the city was aware Doumeki was on the move. There was talk. And not all of it in support.

While some saw it as a new development, others saw it as a reprise of Doumeki's drive to seize the Southern Ward. Ambition and defiance were the words being muttered at court. The nobles couldn't see any other motive than power and greed.

It angered him more than he thought it would. They didn't know Doumeki at all. Unless food was involved, Doumeki was the least ambitious person he knew.

Kimihiro's mouth thinned as he recalled the vase sitting on his bedside table. Well, maybe not just food. Doumeki had the tendency to be stubborn at the most inconvenient times. But at least he was directing that stubbornness to the protection of the city as well.

Kimihiro lifted his cup from the table. "I hope we'll have a consensus soon."

Lord Browning nodded glumly and took a drink from his own cup.

Lady Browning had stopped in front of the large portrait on the west wall. She stared up at it silently for a moment then lifted her free hand and set it gently on the frame. Her fingers gently traced the elaborate relief carved in the wood. "The water loved them."

Hikideshi stared up at the still, painted faces. "They are dearly missed."

Kimihiro watched Hikideshi stare at the portrait of his parents. His usually impassive face had softened, revealing a fond expression.

Lady Browning smiled faintly. "They were kind. No one else has invited me so many times." Her smile faded. "Except Tereza."

Lord Browning wore a pained expression that was hard to see. His wife's sight made integration into the society most noble women enjoyed impossible.

"You are always welcome in this house." Kimihiro offered. It bothered him that they were both suffering from Lady Browning's treatment, which stemmed through no fault of their own.

A smile crossed Lady Browning's face. "You're kind, too."

He couldn't meet her gaze. "My hospitality is somewhat lacking but you're most welcome."

Hikideshi gave Lady Browning a small bow, her arm still linked in his. "I would be delighted to enjoy your company on future occasions."

The lady smiled up at him. But her smile suddenly faltered, a look of perplexity crossing her face.

Hikideshi's head had swivelled south. He stood still for a few moments then turned back to Lady Browning. "Do you enjoy scones, my lady?"

Lord Browning had turned in his chair, staring at them both, a slight frown creasing his forehead.

Lady Browning was staring south but her attention lifted back to Hikideshi's face. "Only with strawberry jam."

Hikideshi gave her a small smile. He started steering her back to the table.

Lord Browning stood and pulled out the chair next to his. He seated his wife as Hikideshi guided her into the chair.

"I'll bring some more scones." Hikideshi's eyes met Kimihiro's across the table. "His Highness should be arriving shortly."

There was _not_ anticipation mixed in with the relief Kimihiro felt at those words. Nor was that relief anything more than concern that Doumeki might be delayed further or not even show up.

He nodded and Hikideshi crossed the room, shutting the door after him as he left.

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro nearly choked as Doumeki walked into the dining room.

He was in shirtsleeves. His jacket was missing, but the waistcoat he wore was lavish enough to make up for it. Doumeki glittered as he walked, hundreds of tiny cherry blossoms floating on swirling currents of fast-moving water. The blue and silver lines of water nearly drowned out the pale pink, gold-edged blossoms.

It made him look different. The white sleeves accentuated the lean lines of his body and the snug fit of the waistcoat encasing his torso. He looked like he'd just come from some formal occasion and it suited him. Sometimes it was hard to remember Doumeki had any royal blood flowing through his veins but it was unmistakable now. It was impossible not to look at him - he was suddenly a commanding figure, a man of consequence. Even his expressionless face leant him an appearance of aloof authority.

He looked good.

It irritated Kimihiro immediately. And even more that his gaze kept straying back to Doumeki's vest.

But wasn't as much what Doumeki was wearing as the way he walked into the room. As if it was normal for him to stroll in late wearing whatever he wanted.

Kimihiro scowled, watching Doumeki as he made his way to the table. He barely noticed Hikideshi following him in with a large tray of scones and sandwiches.

What was Doumeki up to? Kimihiro had despaired of Doumeki's attire in the past and now he had to bite his tongue. It was like a slap in the face for any royalist, elevating Quarter above the Crown. And it was a statement being made by Doumeki of all people. Kimihiro resisted the urge to pull at his hair.

Doumeki seemed confident, though. Kimihiro's eyes narrowed as he recalled Doumeki's past actions. He only hoped that Doumeki wasn't going to extend the possessive confidence he showed to the mansion to _his_ body. Though if Doumeki wasn't afraid to grab him in public, Kimihiro doubted he'd restrain himself in private, even if it was in front of Lord and Lady Browning. His lips thinned.

He met Doumeki's eyes as he stopped at the table. "You're late." There was a snap of irritation in his voice that he hadn't intended.

"Sorry." Doumeki didn't sound sorry at all. "I was delayed." He reached for the chair next to Kimihiro. As he sat, Doumeki set a small box on the table next to Kimihiro's plate.

Kimihiro stared at it. It was unmarked, a simple black box. But it was the type of container one would use to present some sort of gift.

Kimihiro's stare hardened. It was a small box - who knew what was in it.

He glanced at Doumeki, who was anticipating the arrival of the scones Hikideshi was carrying to the table.

Lord Browning's eyebrows had twitched slightly but after glancing at the box on the table, he politely ignored it. He didn't comment on Doumeki's state of dress, either.

His wife was smiling, apparently delighted by Doumeki's arrival and not concerned by the political statement he was wearing. But it was hard to say what Lady Browning was thinking sometimes. "Your Grace." She gave him a warm smile.

"Lady Browning." Doumeki nodded, a salute among equals. "Lord Browning. I hope you weren't waiting long."

Kimihiro picked up his cup, trying to hide his irritation. Sometimes he wished Doumeki would accord _him_ some courtesy-

Lord Browning shook his head. "Lord Watanuki was kind enough to entertain us." He leaned forward in his chair slightly, ignoring the scones on his plate. "The news isn't good." His eyes were tired. "Cassandra is even more set against you after your visit."

Doumeki looked up as Hikideshi transferred some scones to his empty plate. "Is there any way she'll change her mind?"

Lord Browning took no offence at the blunt question. "If she was convinced it was the only way to save the city." He shrugged, a tired gesture. "So far she has dismissed the suggestion."

Doumeki was silent for a moment, frowning down at the scones on his plate.

"I suggest you begin planning regardless. It takes time to organize a festival on the scale the city needs." He glanced sidelong at his wife, a look that was tinged with worry. "And the longer it takes, the worse it will get."

"Any preparations you made could be explained by a local rite at the Southern Ward." Hikideshi interjected quietly. His tray had been emptied but he hadn't withdrawn.

"Shosai (1)." Lady Browning looked up from the scone she was about to split.

Her husband reached for the small dish of strawberry jam on the table and set it closer to her plate. He nodded, a thoughtful look on his face. "Even Cassandra can find no fault in that. While the festivals have been banned, she views the local annual rites as essential in maintaining the Wards and the cohesion of the Quarters." He glanced at Doumeki. "She could hardly find fault in another Keeper doing the same."

If she was fooled by the appearance. Kimihiro doubted she would be. But it meant Lady Heath couldn't publicly criticise any move Doumeki made.

But Doumeki was frowning. "Annual rites." His frown deepened. "I didn't know any were held at the Southern Ward."

"They were once." Hikideshi's quiet observation had all eyes turning towards him. "The ancient dead were not as reviled as they are now."

Reviled. Kimihiro shifted uncomfortably in his chair. It was strong term. But he couldn't deny the Southern Ward had lost much of its old patronage. Before Doumeki had taken back control, attendance beyond the cemetery had been sparse. But even Haruka had held the Ward's rites out of the public eye. He frowned.

A frown that only deepened as Kimihiro saw the look on Doumeki's face. He was staring down at the scone he had split, spreading jam with unnecessary concentration. His face was blank but Kimihiro could tell that he was thinking furiously.

Kimihiro bit into a scone. Not even the sweet plum jam could distract him from the feeling of uneasiness that thought brought to life.

Hikideshi's dark eyes caught his. Kimihiro suddenly knew that he wouldn't like the butler's next words.

Hikideshi's eyes lowered briefly then lifted again. "An annual rite would help secure the Southern Ward. Something Lady Heath believes is a return to proper management might placate her somewhat."

Doumeki's eyes snapped up. They narrowed as he stared at the butler. "Placating Lady Heath is not my priority." It was said mildly but there was an edge to his words.

There was a slightly uncomfortable silence.

Lord Browning looked resigned but not surprised. His wife simply smiled slightly as if she had expected Doumeki's words.

Hikideshi hadn't changed expression but Kimihiro had the feeling that he was somehow satisfied.

Lord Browning ran a hand through his thinning grey hair and leaned back in his chair. "I doubt Cassandra would be swayed even by that." His eyes fell on his teacup. "Perhaps Lord Ishiyama will be able to change her mind." He glanced at Kimihiro. "Or Lord Kuroda. From what I understand, he has some standing with Cassandra."

"I'll write to him." Though what good that would do was uncertain. Lord Kuroda had no reason to act on his behalf. Yet the protection of the capital was the duty close to the lord's heart. And he knew the state of the city.

He became aware of Doumeki's eyes on him as he munched on a scone. Kimihiro ignored him. He had no intention of explaining the friction that now existed between the second lines of west and south.

"It's mostly out of our hands." Lady Browning pointed out softly. "But we can at least start thinking about the nature of the festival." Her eyes were clear, suddenly focused on the here and now. She glanced at Doumeki. "As the Keeper initiating the festival, choosing its form is your prerogative."

Doumeki swallowed the last mouthful of the scone he was eating. "I thought all festivals followed the same basic formula." His eyes slid to Kimihiro.

Lord Browning nodded. "They share the same basic structure but there are various ways that can be met. The choice of a certain procession for example, can change the outcome of the entire festival."

"It will have to be a new festival." Hikideshi sounded slightly distracted. A slight frown creased his forehead. "It would be easiest to extract sections from previous festivals, selecting the elements you require." His gaze had strayed to the nearest window. And fixed there.

Kimihiro frowned and followed his gaze-

A shadow stood outside.

At first he thought it was a loose horse. It was big-

His unease grew as he realized the shadow was too big. And there wouldn't be any horses wandering loose on the estate.

It wasn't a horse.

The shadow shifted. From silhouette to detailed form. It looked like the creation of a crazed potter, thick limbs and a chunky head on a thin spindly neck.

It wasn't anything living.

It stretched, the large head moving closer to the window. Skin ripped and split, a large eye surfacing in the mounds of rippling flesh. The eye swivelled and rolled as the elemental leaned closer to peer inside.

It touched the window.

And exploded. Its head erupted, spurting out in a spray of liquid that turned to smoke as it hit the window. The rest of its body toppled out of sight only to be followed by huge billows of thick smoke that rose up.

Hikideshi stared at the window for a moment, ensuring it was all gone, then returned his attention to Doumeki. "It will have to be a purifying rite on a large scale," he continued. As if nothing had happened.

His knife was a hard line of metal in his hand. Kimihiro carefully set it down on his plate, trying not to let it clatter.

Lady Browning was staring at the now-empty window, her jam coated knife forgotten in one hand. Her gaze was intense, almost angry.

Lord Browning frowned and reached out to lay a hand over hers.

She blinked. Smiled at her husband before turning back to her scone.

Doumeki was frowning. He glanced at the window then at Hikideshi, his eyes narrowing.

Kimihiro glanced at the window. It was clear but he could still see the faint streams of smoke shredding in the air.

But the dispersing remnants gave him no comfort. It was the first time since the guardian statue had broken that something had come that close to the mansion.

Hikideshi was right. The estate was becoming more crowded.

~x~X~x~

1) **Shosai**. In Japan festivals are divided into three types: great, middling and minor. I'm appropriating theses terms to include festivals and annual rites. The festivals that have been banned are Taisai, the great festivals, which involve the entire city. Chusai, middling festivals, involve the Quarters. Shosai, which are local rites usually held at shrines and on shrine grounds, are still carried out.

~x~X~x~


	95. Box Seat IV

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**BOX SEAT**

**IV**

Something had happened.

Doumeki stared hard out the window but he couldn't see anything. Not that he really expected to. Judging from the reactions around the table, whatever it was had gone.

He looked at Kimihiro. His mouth was a thin line. He looked like the last scone he'd eaten had given him indigestion.

"The format of the festival is not our only problem," Browning continued with a glance at his wife. He transferred the scones he had prepared to her plate and helped himself to some sandwiches. He looked up at Doumeki. "What reception have you received to the suggestion of reinstating the festivals?"

"Mixed." Doumeki finished off a scone and reached for the jam. Black cherry. Some of the best he'd had. "Most of the Traditionalists seem likely to support it." There had been quiet enthusiasm from the parishioners he'd talked to, only the awareness of difficulties ahead cautioning their responses. "Several of those with vested interests in the quarter have approached the Ward." Word had quietly spread and people had started to come to him without the need to seek them out.

"Traditionally merchants and fishermen have been patrons of the Southern Ward." Kimihiro sounded distracted as he stared down at the contents of his teacup. "Many of the festivals in the past have been reliant on this patronage." He frowned. "From what I understand, there was some protest when the festivals were banned." His mouth quirked unhappily. "Though not as much as there would have been under different circumstances." His voice had grown quiet.

Browning ran a hand through his hair. "Few were in the mood to protest. How could they speak out against Her Majesty after the _Yorokobaseru_ had sunk?" He glanced at Doumeki. "Forgive me, Your Highness, but your royal mother had made our position difficult."

"Since the State Funeral." All he could remember was the pale petals bruised from thousands of feet. The jet crystals and silken ribbons on his mother's black dress glinting in the weak morning light. The door closing as his mother shouted at his grandfather.

His mouth twisted. It had been screaming more than shouting. The servants had scrambled to get him out of hearing but not before his mother's voice had risen to new heights.

The rest of that day he had pieced together from the whispers of the servants and the comments of his tutors. But it wasn't until he had taken up the Southern Ward, distancing himself from the palace, that Doumeki had started to see the political ramifications of what had happened that day. And it was only after meeting Kimihiro that he had begun to realize exactly what that meant.

Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro. He was sitting quietly, fingers wrapped around the handle of his tea cup. He met Doumeki's gaze, dark blue eyes shadowed, before looking away. It wasn't a happy look.

"And it's continuing to do so." Browning left out a breath that was close to a sigh. "The new edicts have been raising apprehension in the commons. Especially the clause on the new division of land ownership." He frowned.

"It wasn't a wise thing to do." Lady Browning's face was grim. Her eyes were open wide, fixed on a smear of jam on her plate. A hard edge entered her voice. "The land shouldn't be divided without permission."

"There are few who can ask it these days." Kimihiro nudged one of the scones on his plate and then set down his knife. "And you can't blame those who can for keeping quiet."

Lady Browning's eyes slowly rose from her plate. Her pale blue irises suddenly seemed too pale as she fixed her gaze on Kimihiro. "Would you, if you could?"

Kimihiro met her gaze. "No." His voice was level. "But I have protection."

"And they do not." Lady Browning suddenly turned and pinned Doumeki with her unnerving gaze. "Her Majesty has stripped them of it."

Browning laid a hand on his wife's arm. "Forgive me, Your Grace, but your mother has been a different ruler since that day."

A different ruler.

More had changed than that. Sometimes it was hard to recognise his mother in the woman who had taken her place.

Especially when she pursued her vendetta against the old ways. It was as if reason abandoned her and she could see nothing but danger and threat. And she applied all available resources to stamp out all she could of the old traditions. Some more than others.

Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro.

He was quiet, his eyes lowered and fixed on the contents of his cup. With his downcast gaze he looked uncomfortable, almost sad.

Doumeki frowned. He moved his leg so his knee brushed Kimihiro's.

Dark blue eyes flashed up, surprise melting into a warning glare.

Better. Doumeki suppressed a smile. He turned back to Lord Browning. "What sort of festival will we need?"

Browning had been watching his wife spread jam on her scones but now he looked up. "A purifying rite obviously. But we'll have to take into consideration the current imbalance in the second world." He frowned. "Ideally it would involve the entire city. And incorporate the local political concerns." His eyes turned to Kimihiro. "Lord Watanuki?"

Kimihiro nodded, the scowl on his face fading. "Our priority is lessening the stress on the Wards. There's been a build up in the city since the festivals have been banned."

"It's getting crowded," Lady Browning interjected. She reached for another scone.

"Crowded with too many _bakemono_ (1)." Kimihiro grimaced. "It was getting bad before the festivals were banned and their absence has only made it worse." His fingers wrapped around the handle of his teacup. "We need to clear each quarter and then the city as a whole." He glanced at Hikideshi. "It might be easier to have four quarter festivals and then merge them into one. That way each Keeper will be able to tailor the festival to their quarter."

Making it something the commons would embrace more easily. And the other Keepers. Doumeki finished his sandwich. "That would need Lady Heath's cooperation." Unfortunately.

Kimihiro's mouth tightened. "If we convince Lord Ishiyama to stand with us, she'll have little choice but to cooperate." His fingers had tightened on his cup. "At least this way she will be able to dictate the terms within her own quarter. It might mollify her."

A glance at Browning suggested that was a kind interpretation. Having met the woman and hearing the cold vitriol she spouted, Doumeki knew that if she was forced to reverse her decision, it would be unwilling cooperation. Likely little more help than her opposition.

But if that was her choice, he would be ready for it.

"Merging the festivals into one." Doumeki eyed the tray of sandwiches. "What are our options?"

Browning seemed to gather some strength by talking about something they could do. "To put it simply, we'd need to have one element from each of the quarter festivals joining together to take part in a city-wide festival. It could be a movement of people or objects, or both." He frowned. "But we need to incorporate a city-wide purification as well-" His eyes scanned to hall. "A map might help you get an idea of the situation."

A glance showed Kimihiro frowning down at his plate. The scones sitting on it were barely touched. His eyes were downcast but Doumeki doubted he was seeing the scones.

Doumeki reached for another sandwich, setting his leg against Kimihiro's as he leaned forward.

Kimihiro started and shot him an angry stare.

Much better.

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro could hardly believe it. He glared at Doumeki. Thankfully both of his hands were above the table, occupied by sandwiches, but-

One of Kimihiro's eyes twitched. He couldn't exactly kick Doumeki with Lord and Lady Browning at the table-

"My lord?" Hikideshi was staring at him.

Rescue.

But Hikideshi wasn't moving. "Should I bring a map?"

He hadn't replied fast enough. Lord Browning was staring at him, a faint frown on his forehead.

Doumeki, the cad, just gave him an enquiring stare.

As if he didn't know what was wrong- "The Kasuse Map." It was the most accurate of recent decades. And one of the few that included all shrines and dosojin.

Hikideshi bowed and left the room, quietly closing the door behind him.

"Your Grace." Lord Browning's eyes were on Doumeki. "When your grandfather held the Southern Ward there were several lands attached held outside the city."

Recognition sparked in Doumeki's gaze. "They still supply the Ward." He was regarding the other man with interest.

Lord Browning nodded, a look of satisfaction crossing his face. "I was afraid the Crown might have sold them." He paused. "I take it that their accounts still remain the province of the Ward?"

Doumeki nodded. The sandwich he'd been eating remained on his plate. "My aide and I are the only people who see the accounts."

Kimihiro frowned. It might be possible for the Southern Ward to provide some of the materials for the festival. Traditionally certain wood and grains were grown in sacred forests and fields. But it was doubtful that Doumeki could supply a festival on the scale they were suggesting.

"The second lines can help." Lady Browning sounded distracted. "It will be a good season this spring."

But not necessarily the summer. Kimihiro didn't miss the implication.

The door opened and Hikideshi slipped inside, holding a large scroll under one arm.

There were a few scones on his plate but Kimihiro pushed it aside to make room.

Only to have the plate snagged by Doumeki.

Kimihiro shot him a disbelieving stare. Was Doumeki really going to eat his leftovers in front of Lord and Lady Browning?

Doumeki simply met his stare with a mildly inquiring look as he munched on one of the scones. _What?_

He was. Kimihiro fought down the urge to snatch them back and fixed his gaze on the map. Luckily Lord and Lady Browning were doing the same. Maybe they hadn't seen.

If they had, they were pretending not to. Lord Browning's eyes were fixed on the map and Lady Browning was staring at something in her teacup.

"If we leave the Quarters to each Keeper, that leaves the city as a whole." The lord glanced up at him.

Kimihiro studied the map. The gardens and Wards could be included in the local purification. But that left- "The roads and the river. A procession from each of the quarters through the city would be ideal." But that would also be a logistical nightmare. They might be able to close down certain parts of the city but not the main roads. That would seal the fate of the festivals in everyone's eyes.

The look in Lord Browning's eyes said he was thinking the same thing.

"Riders." Hikideshi reached out and placed a finger on the south-eastern gate. "Soon after the main roads were completed, His Majesty held a festival where riders from each quarter rode into the city with their banners. They galloped in through the city and down the main roads to the Hub. They then circled around Hebishima and left the city via the road they had entered."

"Spreading the influence of each quarter through the city and renewing the roads." Lord Browning was intrigued. "Only the banners of the Four Quarters?"

Hikideshi nodded.

"One rider would mean we wouldn't have to close down the main roads." Doumeki observed.

And no one could object. "But it leaves the river." Kimihiro stared at the sleek line working its way though each curve. He frowned. "Usually the bon festival would have served that purpose." But the last had been more than twenty years ago. Few candle floats were now sent down the dark stretch of the river and they were lone acts of defiance by children and old women.

Stillness at his side had him turning. Doumeki was sitting motionless in his chair, small gold eyes stranded in white. Alarm shot through him. "What is it?"

Doumeki blinked. His eyes slid to Kimihiro and then to the map.

"There's no heavy traffic around the Hub." Doumeki's eyes were fixed on the central circle of the city. "Why not a procession from each Ward to the great road leading to Sanzen Asahi/Kankyu?" Doumeki looked up at him, his small eyes meeting Kimihiro's in a steady gaze. "Where the first boats were launched."

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro was staring at him with a faint frown on his face. A frown that deepened as he thought over the proposition.

"The first lantern boats were launched there the year the capital was founded." Hikideshi had a faint smile on his face. "And at that time it was the Southern Keeper who led the procession as well."

"Her Majesty isn't likely to close down the Hub for a festival procession." Kimihiro's words were soft. He gave Doumeki a quick worried glance.

Doumeki knew he would have seen through it.

It had been the last festival that Haruka had been unable to complete. His mother had banned the festivals, breaking the cycle. And now Doumeki was going to start it again, beginning where his grandfather had left off.

He didn't doubt that his mother would see the symbolism at once. But Doumeki wasn't trying to hide what he was doing anymore.

"The procession would have to start at the Eastern Quarter, Your Grace." Browning raised an eyebrow. "Cassandra would lead the procession to you before handing it over."

"No." As much as it would give him satisfaction to force the older woman's submission, he was more interested in her cooperation at the moment. "She would join me leading the procession. Along with the other Keepers."

Lady Browning smiled. "Equals."

Doumeki nodded.

A quick grin crossed Browning's face. "Even Cassandra can't argue with that." His face lightened for the first time during his visit. "It might just work."

Hikideshi leaned over the table to get a better look at the map. The move hid his face but Doumeki thought he might be smiling faintly. "Such a procession is likely to be successful. In more ways than one." He straightened. "It's an opportunity to remind the people of the Wards' power."

And his. Doumeki intended to remind the capital that he was a force to be reckoned with. This festival would go ahead. And it wouldn't be the last.

Doumeki glanced at Kimihiro. He was staring at the map, a faint look of anxiety tightening his pale face. Whatever he was thinking was troubling him.

The thigh against his knee was relaxed. Either Kimihiro had forgotten about it or gotten used to the contact.

The box still sat untouched on the table, pushed out of the way of the map.

Doumeki frowned.

Kimihiro suddenly looked up, meeting his gaze. "Use Aurion. A Keeper should ride a shimme in a purification procession."

There was more to it than that. He could tell from Kimihiro's serious expression.

"Cassandra still has her shimme." Lady Browning was staring at him. "She had them taken out to her country estates rather than sell them."

An expression of surprise flickered across Kimihiro's face. He hadn't known.

Maybe Lady Heath was a traditionalist in her own way. They just had to find out how to use that to their advantage. Doumeki's eyes rested on the centre of the map. He wasn't above using the woman's weaknesses to bend her to his will.

Even if that meant invoking his mother's displeasure.

"A unified front would be a potent force." Kimihiro's gaze drifted absently. His eyes fell on the box, half hidden by the map. A faint scowl crossed his face and he looked away. "The best outcome if we can achieve it."

But Browning was frowning. One of his hands had slid into his pocket, withdrawing a gold watch, the cover etched with a fine tracery of wisteria. "Cassandra expects us for dinner." A wry expression crossed his face. "Lucinda needs some new clothes and we will have to return with some."

Lady Browning smiled at him. "It won't take long." One of her pale gloved hands wrapped around her husband's arm. "Arthur has a good eye. We'll just tell Cassandra we stopped for afternoon tea."

No lies. But Lady Browning seemed less able to hide things than Kimihiro. Not intentionally.

Kimihiro stood. "We'll have to discuss this further."

Hikideshi began quietly rolling up the map, eyes downcast. But Doumeki didn't miss the glance to the box on the table. The quick slide of black eyes to him.

The slight thinning of the butler's mouth.

Browning nodded and helped his wife to her feet. "I'll consult with Lord Iemura." He glanced at Kimihiro and received a nod. His eyes slid to Doumeki. "Your Grace, I trust that you'll want to talk with the Northern Keeper yourself?"

Doumeki nodded. He wanted to talk to Durham - and not just about the festivals.

"In the meantime, I'll seek out some of the performers and craftsmen." A momentary frown crossed Browning's face. "Some have remained in the city. We'll need their skills no matter what form the festival takes."

Kimihiro's eyes flickered. "I know how to contact some of those who left." He was already tucking in his chair.

Leaving the box on the table. Doumeki's eyes fixed on it as he followed suit. He wasn't going to let Kimihiro leave it that easily.

A touch on his arm stopped Doumeki before he could reach for it.

Lady Browning had a hand resting on his sleeve. "Your Highness." Her eyes were a thick ring of pale blue surrounding a small circle of black. "Be careful." Her hand tightened on his arm, her fingers like small steel bands. "They will know by now."

Her grip suddenly ceased. She was moving before he could reply, hand reaching out for her husband's arm.

Browning glanced up at him as he folded his wife's hand around his elbow. He gave a small nod, eyes grave, then headed towards the door.

Kimihiro had noticed the exchange. His eyes had been on him and now flicked to Lady Browning. There was no expression on his face but the hand Doumeki could see had fisted at his side.

He'd heard.

~x~X~x~

1) **Bakemono** - used as a term for supernatural beings in general but I'm using it in the original sense – spirits possessing evil powers.

~x~X~x~


	96. Box Seat V

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**BOX SEAT**

**V**

The front door closed with finality.

They knew.

It had been almost a guarantee when Doumeki reset the dosojin so spectacularly but it was still chilling to have confirmation.

There were voices in the wind, whispers in the flow of water. Information passed differently in the second world and Lady Browning was one of the few who listened to it so closely.

If the knowledge of Doumeki as an exorcist was out, then They would know as well.

He most certainly.

A step jerked him out of his thoughts. He could tell from the warmth at his back that whoever it was stood too close.

And there was only one person who was so oblivious to personal space.

Kimihiro turned to Doumeki. Even though he was in shirtsleeves, he stood with no sign of discomfort in the chill of the large foyer. He looked comfortable, the gilt cherry blossoms on his vest matching the grandeur of the stark black and white ward on the floor, the lines that snaked out across the walls. Instead of overpowering him, they framed him. He stood as if he belonged here.

Kimihiro eyes narrowed as he studied Doumeki's vest. Doumeki couldn't have gone for a more politically loaded ensemble if he tried. Cherry blossoms on water? It _could_ be read as support but the size of the blossom compared to the overwhelming currents suggested it was something else. Doumeki didn't usually wear flashy clothes but he was tonight.

And Kimihiro was starting to get the feeling that he was going to get involved somehow.

Doumeki was staring at him. He held out the small box Kimihiro had left on the dining room table. "You forgot this."

Kimihiro took the box automatically. It wasn't what he was worried about at the moment. He scowled. "What's happened?"

"There's a new play opening tonight."

Kimihiro nearly dropped the box. "A new play." He gave Doumeki a flat stare, daring him to suggest that was the reason why the Keeper was dressed so formally. Kimihiro didn't have any intention of accompanying Doumeki to the theatre.

The dark nature of playhouses aside, he didn't trust Doumeki in a public cafe, let alone a private box. Which it would be with Doumeki attending.

Doumeki simply stared at him.

Kimihiro's stare turned into a glare. He was _not_-

"Are you going to open it?"

"What?" It took a few seconds to work out what Doumeki was asking. But then he followed Doumeki's gaze to the box in his hand. His fingers had closed tightly around it and the round edges were cutting into his hand.

He'd accepted it, not only once but twice. He couldn't very well give it back now.

He glared at Doumeki and took a grip on the lid. Normally he would have opened it in private. But there was nothing normal about the gifts Doumeki gave him.

Or normal about the way he kept accepting them without thinking-

The box lid lifted smoothly on its hinges to reveal a flash of dark blue. A single large stone the size of his thumbnail set on a finger-length pin. A stickpin.

It was an extravagant gift. And not one given to a casual acquaintance. It was the sort of gift-

The sort of gift a woman would give her beau.

Kimihiro stared at the pin, not sure whether he wanted to throw it at Doumeki or pretend he'd never seen it.

Vases. Flowers. And now a stickpin. Doumeki was trying to follow courting etiquette. Both sides of it at once.

It would have been laughable if it wasn't happening to him. He probably should have been insulted to be treated like a woman and then like a man-

And no, he didn't want to think about _that_.

-but Kimihiro had known from the start it would be a social disaster. He just hadn't expected…this. Where was Doumeki getting all these ideas?

"You can wear it tonight." Doumeki, unsurprisingly, wasn't perturbed by his lengthening silence.

Kimihiro shot him a narrow stare, annoyed at his persistence. "I said I'm not going with you to a play." And there wasn't anything Doumeki could say that would change his mind.

"We're not." Doumeki said it like he hadn't intended to go the play. And hadn't all along.

Kimihiro stared at him, suddenly suspicious. Something like horror-tinged dread edging into his thoughts. Doumeki was too confident. As if he _knew_ Kimihiro would give in at the end.

~x~X~x~

The shocked stillness made it hard to say whether Kimihiro liked it or not. But he was probably trying to decide how to respond. With anger probably.

But Doumeki was used to that.

"You can wear it tonight." He said it to get a reaction. He enjoyed Kimihiro's flashes of irritation. They were preferable to silence.

Doumeki would have liked to see Kimihiro wear it, too. Kimihiro wore the coat he had given him at New Years and Doumeki was curious to see if he would wear the stickpin.

Would wear a courting gift.

Irritation played across Kimihiro's face, his dark eyes sparking. "I said I'm not going with you to a play." There was an edge to the words.

Doumeki suppressed a smug smile. "We're not."

But Kimihiro's eyes had narrowed. "Why are you dressed liked that?" The question was flat, tinged with suspicion.

Doumeki looked down at his clothes, enjoying the look of annoyance that crossed Kimihiro's face. "We're going out."

Kimihiro's annoyance turned into surprise, closely followed by anger.

Doumeki continued before he could get out a word. "I have an invitation to the latest opera." It wasn't a play.

Kimihiro twitched, a small spasmodic movement. But disappointingly he managed to get himself under control. "I told you." The calm in his voice was like ice over boiling mud. "I'm not going-"

"Lady Korin has asked for help. There's a problem at the Nine Foxes' Theatre." It was a shame to cut Kimihiro short but the way realization changed his face was almost as entertaining as an explosion. "She asked if I could introduce you."

Kimihiro was silent. He stared at Doumeki narrowly for a few moments, suspicion clear in the dark blue slits of his eyes. "What sort of problem?"

"One of the lead singers has been having accidents."

Kimihiro's mouth had shut, his eyes relaxing from their suspicious narrow gaze. He was listening but there was still some wariness in his eyes. As if he suspected an ulterior motive.

"Of the near-fatal variety." Doumeki added. Kimihiro wasn't able to refuse anyone in danger.

Kimihiro frowned. "And this has happened only recently?"

Doumeki nodded. "The last two weeks."

Kimihiro's frown deepened. He glanced at Doumeki and scowled. "I'll have to get changed."

"I'll wait." He was looking forward to seeing what Kimihiro would wear. Aside from their visit to the Northern Ward, he hadn't seen Kimihiro in formal clothes before. But a visit to the theatre provided a unique opportunity.

Kimihiro shot him a glare as if he suspected what he was thinking.

But Doumeki simply stood there.

With one last narrow look, Kimihiro started up the stairs, the noise he made ascending the steps conveying his displeasure.

Doumeki just watched, enjoying seeing him in motion.

Hikideshi had been standing silently to one side of the foyer. As Kimihiro vanished up the stairs, the butler turned his attention to Doumeki. "I heard that you reset a dosojin, Your Grace."

Doumeki turned to the other man. Hikideshi's gaze was sharp, assessing. Doumeki nodded. "Not alone. Kimihiro guided me through the process."

The butler's eyes flickered at his use of Kimihiro's name. "Not yet, perhaps." Hikideshi was staring at him intently, an assessing gaze that was almost unnerving. "But that will change with time."

Will. The butler sounded certain of that. Doumeki looked at him, silently questioning.

Hikideshi simply stared back at him, his black eyes suddenly distant.

The foyer suddenly darkened.

Light faltered and flickered. The contrast between the black ward lines and white marble waning until shadows filled the rooms. The chandelier had dimmed, turning white to grey.

The warmth sucked away until Doumeki found himself wishing for his coat. White plumes escaped his lips, marking each breath.

It was even colder than it had been outside.

A small cracking noise made him look down.

Frost was snaking across the black and white marble.

The mansion was suddenly different: foreboding and full of threat. Strange ripples of cold air snaked out through the room, brushing past but not actually touching him. Doumeki didn't move, knowing if he did he'd come into contact with them. For some reason he didn't think that was a good idea.

"Good." Hikideshi's voice was filled with satisfaction. "You can sense it."

Doumeki carefully turned. His eyes widened as he saw the butler. He looked exactly the same but it wasn't what Doumeki was seeing that had him so surprised. The cold streams of air flowed out from the man, snaking through the foyer. Hikideshi himself was a freezing pillar, like a blade of ice: cold, sharp and implacable. A deadly stillness that could erupt into threat at any moment. And the mansion was the same. The walls, the floor under his feet, were filled with the same chill as if it was an extension of the butler's body.

For the first time Doumeki felt the first flicker of wariness. Hikideshi had never threatened him but now he was aware of the danger he represented. Doumeki had always known Hikideshi was formidable but only now did he see the power the butler held.

Kimihiro was flaring guttering fire. Hikideshi was a heavy cold fog that threatened to seep into everything and swallow it up.

Doumeki felt his body tensing up in reaction. His fingers itched for his bow, any weapon he could use to defend himself.

Something suddenly flashed through the air. A mix of fire and ice that sped across the foyer and directly towards him.

Doumeki automatically caught it before it could hit his chest. It hit his palm and his fingers clawed around it as pain shot through his hand.

Warmth flowed down his arm and flooded his hand. Whatever he'd caught was suddenly disintegrating, falling apart even as he looked down. It was a ball of dark clay crumbling and falling to pieces that fell from his fist. Pieces that broke into grains of fine black sand. The process was so quick that he only had a quick glimpse of startling white before the last of it flowed away. The grains turned into fine dust that disappeared as it hit the cold lines filling the foyer.

The warmth in his arm and hand was gone. Doumeki was left staring at his bare hand.

"Your power is instinctive."

Doumeki started as Hikideshi's voice came from beside him. He looked up to find the butler standing only a foot away. He'd crossed the foyer without Doumeki noticing. And both Hikideshi and the mansion felt like they normally did. There was no trace of the freezing wind that had flooded the room or the strange chill that had iced the walls and floor.

Hikideshi seemed unaware of Doumeki's consternation, studying his open hand with clinical assessment. "When you sense a threat, your warding tightens up automatically." His eyes rose to Doumeki's face. "That in turn allows you to unconsciously channel power into deflection."

Doumeki stared down at his hand. He hadn't been aware of doing anything. Whatever he did, it wasn't an act of will.

He flexed his fingers as he considered Hikideshi's words. If there was danger then he would be more likely to access his dormant power. He frowned. It wasn't instinct as much as the circumstances. He'd never used it before coming into contact with Kimihiro. And then it was usually when Kimihiro was in danger-

Doumeki frowned. "What was it?" He wanted to know what Hikideshi had thrown at him.

Hikideshi never showed much emotion but now his face tightened into an expressionless mask. "A shudoku. They are usually given to an enemy to attract ill luck. In the worst cases, to lead to the receiver's death. This one was hidden inside a toy."

Doumeki's frown deepened. The butler wasn't usually so forthcoming. And when he was, it was usually to pass on some piece of information. There was something more that Hikideshi wasn't saying. "A toy?"

The butler was watching him, his face expressionless. "It was a gift intended for His Lordship."

Anger flooded him as the significance of that registered. Someone had been trying to kill Kimihiro when he was a child. "When was this?" The words were harsh.

Hikideshi's face relaxed, smoothing into more normal lines. "Not long after Lord and Lady Watanuki were laid to rest." Hikideshi's eyes lowered. "One of many." There was an edge of anger in his voice, cold like the chill that had filled the mansion. "It wasn't the most powerful but one of the nastier examples."

Doumeki looked up from his hand. "How many have there been?"

Hikideshi was silent, studying him with expressionless black eyes. He suddenly turned. "Come with me."

With a glance up at the landing on the second floor, Doumeki followed.

Hikideshi led him across the black and white ward set into the floor and under the staircase. Doumeki could see the intricate carvings on the banister as they passed. There were the undulating coils of a dragon but also small fish and frogs he'd never noticed before.

It made him question what else he'd failed to see.

The open space of the white marble foyer gave way to a narrow corridor. It was dimly lit with waning light filtering through the windows. Hikideshi walked quietly in front of him, the pale embroidery of the cherries glittering on his cuffs, a few small blossoms at his nape partly obscured by the fall of his dark hair.

They followed the corridor, passing several doors until they came to a stop in front of a large wooden portal. A slab of oak that looked more suited to guard the inner chamber of some fortress. But it swung inward easily enough when Hikideshi pressed a hand to its surface.

The butler gestured for him to enter.

Doumeki glanced at him but the other man's expression gave no sign of his intentions.

Doumeki entered the room. Shelves were lined with canisters and utensils hung from hooks along the wall. A large sink and bench sat along one wall and there was a table covered with an impressive array of knives. He turned as Hikideshi closed the door behind him.

Hikideshi caught his questioning stare but simply crossed the room to the large fireplace. He lifted a shuttered lantern from its hook on the wall and set it on the table. A wick from the low burning fire was used to light it and Hikideshi extinguished the wick with a quick snap of his wrist. A thin line of smoke drifted up from the blackened strip, curling up to the rafters.

The butler lifted the lantern and walked across the room, heading for a large door set in the far wall. It opened to reveal the shelves of fully stocked pantry. But Hikideshi wasn't interested in the provisions neatly lined up on the shelves. He knelt and lifted up the trapdoor in the floor. He glanced back at Doumeki, a beckoning stare of black.

Doumeki walked over and stared down at the narrow passage. A wooden ladder disappeared into the darkness below. It made him wary. But it wasn't just the lack of light. There was a chill funnel of air rising from the opening. A sensation that was more than cold air and sent a chill through him.

Hikideshi was staring at him. He pushed back the open hatch, laying it flat on the floor. "There's something you should see." Hikideshi took hold of the frame around the opening and started descending the ladder, holding the lantern high in one hand. The light expanded as the butler descended, lighting the hard earthen floor below.

Something to show him. It looked like Hikideshi wasn't going to take no as an answer.

Doumeki waited until the butler was standing on solid ground and then started down after him. The wooden rungs were smooth under his hands, polished by long use. The chill increased as he descended until Doumeki began to wish he still had his jacket and coat.

Hikideshi didn't seem to feel the cold, though. The butler glanced at him as Doumeki stepped off the ladder, then lifted the lantern, walking out into the darkness.

"You've shown yourself to be a threat." Hikideshi's voice was level. "You're an exorcist and you're the Keeper of the Southern Ward. Both make you the focus of the second world." The light of the lantern showed packed earth and solid stone walls. It was curiously empty for a cellar. And unnaturally cold.

Hikideshi stopped walking. "You need to know what that means." He unshuttered the lantern and lifted it up.

Light was suddenly cast along the floor and far wall. Cut by small structures spread across the earthen floor. Gorintos.

Grave stones.

Hikideshi's gaze fixed on the markers. His face was set, planes of shadows and harsh light. "You must have wondered why I am the only servant in this house." He glanced at Doumeki before returning his gaze to the small stone markers. He slowly knelt, setting the lantern on the ground. It sent shadows of the markers over the wall, stark black lines that stretched up across the stone and bled into the shadows beyond the lantern's reach. Hikideshi reached out and placed a hand one of the markers, the gesture curiously gentle. "It wasn't always the case." His words had been emotionless but now anger tightened his voice. The cellar seemed to drop a few more degrees in temperature.

_An entire household._

Doumeki suddenly knew with cold certainty. "The canister?"

Hikideshi nodded. His eyes fell shut briefly and when they opened, they were dark with regret. "My grip slipped." His voice tightened. "Only for a moment but that was enough." He suddenly stood, a movement that was speed and strength combined, and pinned Doumeki with a hard stare. "Wards can only offer so much protection. They only guard again spirits or elementals - if they have no host. A ward will likely reveal them, but it won't stop them. Objects and people can move across boundaries."

His eyes narrowed. "Now that you've publicly embarked on a course to reinstate the festivals, you'll be the focus of both worlds. Not only have you irrevocably tied yourself to His Lordship in the view of the second world but politically." He frowned. "There are those who have a vested interest in ensuring the festivals are suspended." He gave Doumeki a sharp glance. "And the most dangerous will be those closest to you."

Doumeki stared hard at him. For some reason, he didn't think that Hikideshi was referring to his mother.

But Hikideshi didn't expand on that observation. He reached down to pick up the lantern.

"Why bury them here?" The question had been bothering him. It didn't seem like something Hikideshi would have done if he had a choice. Doumeki didn't think Kimihiro would approve of burying his former servants in the dark confines of the eerily cold basement, either.

Hikideshi slowly straightened. "No one survived." The lantern hung stock-still from his hand. "And it wasn't something a child should have seen." Something in his voice suggested it wasn't anything anyone should have seen.

Kimihiro. Doumeki stared at the small forest of grave markers. Kimihiro had seen more than enough death in his childhood.

"There wasn't much time." Hikideshi's voice was quiet. "And I cannot leave the mansion." The words were dropped like stones into water. Suddenly the polite distance was back, the flow of information abruptly cut off. Hikideshi adjusted the lantern's cover, throwing the gravestones into darkness once more.

But having seen them, Doumeki was aware they were still there. Darker shadows in the darkness, cold spots in the earthen chill. Cold like the mansion itself, like the frozen threat that Hikideshi had revealed to him in the foyer.

A promise of death.

Hikideshi started walking back to the ladder, only to pause after a few steps as he realized Doumeki hadn't moved.

"Is that why you're the only one here?"

Hikideshi hesitated then turned towards him. He stared at Doumeki silently for few moments. "I once suggested His Lordship needed more staff but he refused to consider it." Hikideshi's black eyes met Doumeki's gaze. "They will come here." There was no doubt in his words. "And Lord Watanuki will not allow anyone to be in danger because of him." He continued walking and slowly started up the ladder.

Doumeki slowly followed after him, glancing back at the cold filled darkness.

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro paced the foyer. He'd tried to resist the urge at first but staying still had been too much effort.

He had felt it when Hikideshi raised the protections of the mansion. His shirt had nearly slipped from his hands when he felt the chilling cold that seeped up through the walls. It had taken him a few frightened seconds to realize that they weren't under attack.

It would have been much worse if they were. Hikideshi wouldn't have held back.

The cold had died after a few seconds but Kimihiro had quickly started changing. He didn't know what Hikideshi was doing but he had an idea.

Several minutes later and he was dressed. _Not_ wearing the stickpin. There was no sign of either Doumeki or Hikideshi in the foyer. But Doumeki's jacket and coat still hung on the coat rack.

Kimihiro picked up one of the jacket's sleeves to look at the design. Metallic silver and blue thread glinted in the light, flowing lines as the river ran its course past river beds lined with cherry trees. It was a flood surge, the water capped with silver spray and threatening to break free of its banks. But the cherry's roots firmly gripped the bank, their branches swaying in the wind but only slightly. River and cherry trees alike sat on a black background, void except for a few petals on the wind.

At least it was less provocative than the vest.

He frowned, slowly releasing the sleeve. His own was much more simply adorned. After short debate, he'd settled on the most subtle of his suits. A simple motif of calm waters, reeds and water grasses disturbed by the passage of small gold dragons. His crest and quarter. Perfectly acceptable. But he feared it would be remarked on nonetheless.

The pattern on his vest was much the same. Except for the tiny warblers flying in the sky.

Kimihiro scowled. They were tiny but be _knew_ Doumeki was going to see them. And read some weird message from them, no doubt. There were times when the interpretation of symbolism could be taken too far.

He walked away from the coat rack. Suddenly aware of how empty the foyer was. What was taking them so long? Hikideshi would know that he was waiting-

There was a small noise. Hikideshi was entering the foyer, Doumeki not far behind. Coming in from behind the staircase.

Kimihiro's irritation vanished. Suddenly only the twisting knots of anxiety in his stomach were left. Hikideshi hadn't- He glanced at Hikideshi.

Hikideshi caught his gaze and gave him a slight nod.

He had. Kimihiro's eyes shot to Doumeki.

But Doumeki only seemed thoughtful. His small pale eyes met Kimihiro's with no sign of aversion or hesitation.

Relief mingled with exasperation. Doumeki was such an idiot. He had no sense of self preservation.

"Are you ready?"

Kimihiro's eye twitched. Doumeki was asking as if _he_ was the one who had been waiting. As if he had been asked to drop his plans for the evening. Kimihiro embraced the growing irritation he was feeling, letting it replace the confusing mix of relief and concern. "I've been waiting."

Doumeki seemed to shrug off the accusation. Hikideshi had retrieved Doumeki's jacket from the coat rack and now held it out for Doumeki to shrug it back on.

The handkerchief in his jacket pocket had been dislodged and Kimihiro automatically reached out and tugged it up into place. Really, it was a wonder Doumeki ever managed to look presentable-

Doumeki was staring at him.

Kimihiro pulled his hand away as if it had been burned. "If we don't go now, we'll be late."

Doumeki didn't say anything. But Kimihiro had caught the small smile that curved his lips.

How had Doumeki talked him into this? Kimihiro had been slightly suspicious at first but now his dread was back in full force. Bolstered immeasurably by the sight of Doumeki standing in the foyer, dressed full formal attire. "We're only going to meet Lady Korin." He said it to reassure himself as much as clarify the situation for Doumeki.

Doumeki simply looked at him. "Lady Korin has a box seat."

And there was no choice but to dress for the occasion. But Kimihiro couldn't help but feel uneasy. He glanced down at the jacket he wore. It wasn't what he usually wore for meeting clients. It felt too much like something else. He glanced over at Hikideshi who was standing next to the hall stand. "Hikideshi."

The butler immediately came forward with the coat he held. Kimihiro ignored the way Doumeki's faint look of surprise melted into something that made his face go blank and shrugged on the coat Hikideshi held out. With the ruin of his old coat, Doumeki's gift was the only garment he had that was warm enough and matched.

Doumeki watched him as Hikideshi settled the coat properly on his shoulders. Too closely.

Kimihiro resisted the urge to hit him.

He still remembered how Doumeki had asked him out to the opera that night. He'd flatly refused the possibility then but here he was, about to go out.

He didn't know how he let Doumeki talk him into these situations. Even when he outright refused, he ended doing exactly what Doumeki wanted.

Kimihiro glanced at Doumeki from the corner of his eye and scowled when he realized what he was doing. He had enough problems fighting Doumeki off without fighting his own reactions.

The night was going to be a disaster.

~x~X~x~


	97. Box Seat VI

AN: Here we go XD The idea was so much fun that I couldn't resist XDDD I've always wanted to take these two to the theatre :D And besides, there's something interesting there *evil smile*

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**BOX SEAT**

**VI**

Most of the theatres in the Southern Quarter were crammed into the busy district between the wharves and the Hub. All too many were squeezed into long blocks, the entrances reached through small streets or with limited frontage on the main streets. And as a rule that meant cramped and often dubious access.

The Nine Foxes' Theatre was a rarity. Instead of one long narrow block, the theatre had been built on three, providing access for carriages to deliver their charges to the front steps without the indignity of walking through squalid streets.

And of course it made the arrival of Doumeki's carriage all the more conspicuous. Kimihiro shifted uneasily on his seat as he peered out the window. The only consolation was that the performance had already started. Aside from a few valets and the odd carriage, there were few people to mark their arrival.

Even the ladies of the night were kept outside the gates, unable to press in around the theatre for their usual importuning. But Kimihiro had noticed the gathering of brightly dressed women in the small park further down the street. No doubt several of the carriages bearing members of the audience would stop at the small green on their way out.

The carriage slowed, the team's hooves suddenly loud and distinct as they slowed to a trot and finally a walk. Kimihiro shifted, drawing away from Doumeki slightly, disengaging their hands. Lately the Keeper had a tendency to either grab his hand or touch his leg to Kimihiro's. This time it had been the former. Kimihiro had been willing to accept it as the lesser of two evils.

But he still wasn't prepared to be seen that way outside the confines of the carriage.

Doumeki glanced at him, a sideways shift of pale eyes, but said nothing. He simply stood as the carriage stopped, stepping out onto the step as the footman opened the door and onto the cobbles.

Kimihiro followed him, looking around the yard. No one had taken any notice of their arrival. No one aside from the valets who where preparing to open the doors for them.

It wasn't until he was standing on the ground that he realized Doumeki had taken his hand to help him out of the carriage.

"What are you doing?" Kimihiro hissed.

"I'm courting you." It was said as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"You're-" Kimihiro's eyebrows snapped down. "I know that!" It was just amazing that Doumeki was actually saying it aloud. The idiot. A quick glance showed the footman was just out of hearing range.

"I'm not a woman!" He didn't need Doumeki helping him out of carriages and presenting him with flowers and gifts at every turn. It was almost like the prince had taken his education on courting and placed the ill-fitting template on him. It was annoying and hideously obvious.

So much for being circumspect.

Doumeki's eyes traced over him, slowly from head to foot. An expression that could only be called a smirk crossed his lips. "I know."

Kimihiro battled an urge to hit him. He ignored the rising heat in his face and stomped past Doumeki to the stairs.

Doumeki followed after him calmly, as if nothing had happened.

Cad. Kimihiro hurried up the steps.

The wind was bitingly cold and Kimihiro was glad to escape into the warmth of the foyer. A golden light suffused the elegant interior. Chandeliers hung from the cream ceiling on elegant black iron frames, casting light over the intricate moulding and woodwork that framed each section of the ceiling. Ward lines were laced through the decorative patterns, just as they wove through the sinuous gilt framework supporting the polished wooden banister. Sumptuous red velvet lay over the white marble floor, leading up to a grand staircase. At the top stood a huge crystal lamp that shed light like a fountain, light flowing golden over the crystalline strands. The wall behind it was covered by a large mural of two lovers, an artwork that patrons could admire before they turned left or right.

Kimihiro paused, staring at the mural. It was half hidden by the woman's full skirts but it was still possible to make out the russet drape of fur that trailed through the grass. A fox's tail. Usually women were depicted as the seductive spirits but in this case it was clearly the man.

It hinted at the story behind the name. Nine Foxes' Theatre. There were several legends about kitsune (1) which had once prowled the area, seducing local beauties.

There was a small desk to the left of the doors. The woman standing behind it gave a graceful bow as she met Kimihiro's eyes, a welcoming smile on her face. Kimihiro hesitated, not sure whether they were staying long enough to bother with giving their coats into her keeping.

Doumeki solved the problem by shrugging off his coat and walking over to the desk. Hesitantly, Kimihiro did the same.

The woman's smile warmed as Doumeki's jacket was revealed. Her eyes passed over them both in admiration as she took their coats. "Would you like a program, Your Highness?"

Kimihiro gave her a startled glance. She knew Doumeki on sight. The devices on his jacket were telling for those who knew but her manner spoke of familiarity.

"No." Doumeki was glancing up the stairs. "We're here to see Lady Korin."

She glanced at Kimihiro and back to Doumeki. She didn't seem to be put off by Doumeki's abrupt manners. "Lady Korin is waiting for you in her box." Her smile widened. "Would you like a valet to take you?"

Doumeki shook his head. "I know the way." He turned and started for the stairs.

Kimihiro followed silently, bemused. It looked like Doumeki was familiar with the theatre. He didn't even spare a glance for their opulent surroundings.

Kimihiro left his eyes trace the walls, the decorative moulding and panels. It was beautiful, simple artistic design to untutored eyes. But he could see the wards, the lines that were hidden amid it all. The theatre was well protected.

Or should have been.

Doumeki turned right at the top of the stairs and started along the gallery, heading towards an archway at the end.

It led into a mezzanine. A series of wide arches marked the curving hallway, a chandelier hung from the ceiling in each of the large open 'rooms'. A low marble balustrade enclosed the space even as it allowed an unobstructed view into the main lobby below. Cream pillars decorated with dark brown moulding enforced the illusion of windows. During an intermission, the fashionable and wealthy sitting in the stalls, boxes and dress circles (2) could look down and spy on the less well-heeled members of the gallery.

Kimihiro turned his attention back to the hall. The carpet had changed, a series of interlocking wards that formed an elegant pattern and emphasised the alternating dark and light chairs and lounges spaced along the cream walls. It was elegant and tasteful enough that people probably didn't notice the protections it hid.

An usher was standing at the end of the hallway and bowed as they approached. He must have known who Doumeki was because he silently turned and started leading them out of the mezzanine.

The usher led them along red carpeted corridors that served the private boxes. With the opera already begun, the corridors were disserted except for the uniformed pages standing outside the doors. There were curious glances but no one made any move to intercept them.

But Kimihiro suspected that the news of their arrival would work its way to those seated within the boxes. Likely they had come for gossip as much as the new opera.

The usher finally stopped at a door. A valet stood guard instead of a page boy. He took one glance at Doumeki and nodded to their guide even as he opened the door and ushered them inside. They were led through to a small sitting room that was abruptly cut off by heavy curtains. To judge from the loud murmur of numerous voices coming from behind them, it led out into the box exposed to the audience.

The soft lighting revealed a woman sitting in one of several chairs set around a small table. It was richly appointed, gilt wood and red velvet upholstery, but it faded in comparison to the woman's dress. Her skirts trailed out in a brilliant sea of colours, a deep purple so heavily embroidered by patterns of crisscrossing branches and vines in blues, reds and gold that the original colour of the gown was almost concealed. The matching fan in her hand snapped shut with a flick of her wrist as she stood at their arrival, rising to greet them.

Lady Korin was striking rather than beautiful. Dark brown eyes and wide cheekbones revealed her mixed heritage but the hair that was pulled back to fall in a jewelled cascade of ringlets was a rich shade of gold. But it wasn't until she smiled that Kimihiro realized how she had become one of the most sought after ladies at court. It wasn't just her appearance that drew people to her.

"Your Highness." She sank into a deep graceful curtsey, her emerald hairpins glinting under the soft lights. "Thank you for coming to see me."

Doumeki bowed in return. "Lady Korin."

She smiled. Her dark eyes turned to Kimihiro. "Lord Watanuki." She gave a second curtsey, only slightly less deep than the one she had given Doumeki. "Forgive me for asking your aid at such short notice."

Kimihiro glanced sideways at Doumeki as he straightened from his bow. "I'm at your service." Doumeki was on his best behaviour. Suspicious.

Lady Korin's smile widened, softening the lines of her face. "You are too kind." Her smile faded slightly. "I know the current situation is not favourable."

Kimihiro blinked. That surprised him. Lady Korin seemed more aware of his difficulties than most of his clients.

A round of applause suddenly interrupted the steady murmur and soft music that had been filtering through the heavy velvet curtain. Lady Korin turned to regard the partition. "The first act is over but I hope you'll join me for the second."

Kimihiro glanced at the heavy curtain. It _was_ a box seat that lay behind it. A viewing platform and a gallery at the same time. The nobles watched their neighbours as much as the performances they came to see. There was no doubt there were eyes fixed on Lady Korin's box and people would take note of who appeared in it. He wasn't sure that being seen with Doumeki in such a public place was such a good idea. At the Northern Ward and within the Southern Quarter was one thing but in a box at one of the capital's eminent theatres sent a different message altogether.

Doumeki was staring at him. A look that suggested he knew what Kimihiro was thinking. "We'd be delighted." He held out an elbow in invitation.

For a mad moment Kimihiro thought the gesture was for _him_.

But Lady Korin's eyes warmed and she laid her hand lightly on Doumeki's elbow. She turned to Kimihiro. He must have been wearing a strange expression because her smile became encouraging. "I don't hide my beliefs, Lord Watanuki." Her voice was almost gentle. "I would be honoured if you joined me."

He couldn't object after such an invitation. And Doumeki knew it from the satisfied expression on his face. Kimihiro offered his elbow and Lady Korin graciously accepted, her fingers a soft weight on his arm.

The valet drew back the heavy velvet curtains. With her arms linked with theirs, Doumeki on her right and Kimihiro on her left, Lady Korin walked through the parted curtains into the open box. It was dim but the lady steered them to the waiting seats without difficulty.

Kimihiro and Doumeki saw her seated before taking their seats. Her hands slipped from their arms as soon as she sat, her wide glittering skirts flowing gracefully out of the chair like a small river.

Kimihiro settled uneasily in his chair, aware their appearance hadn't gone unnoticed. He still wasn't happy about the situation. There was a difference between making an appearance and shoving his presence down the collective throats of court.

The couple in the next box had noticed them. The lady had clutched her husband's arm and was whispering into his ear. Her fan flicked sideways, an overt gesture, even as her guests turned to towards them. Exclamations of surprise and the low comments they exchanged were audible even over the orchestra.

Kimihiro did his best to ignore them but he could practically feel the ripple of the spreading news. Occupants of boxes further away were suddenly craning their necks in an effort to see for themselves. Some didn't even bother to hide their interest, leaving their seats to lean over their box's railings. And their actions were catching the attention of those below. He could already see faces turning up towards them.

A hand on his arm pulled Kimihiro's attention back to Lady Korin.

She was staring at the stage below, ignoring buzz rising from the audience. "I'm afraid your presence here will cause some difficulties." She glanced at him sidelong. "But His Highness hopes, as I do, that being seen in society once more might help contrast your reputation." Her dark eyes were grave.

He glanced over at Doumeki who simply stared back at him. As if everything was going to plan.

Kimihiro frowned. He'd thought this was a last minute outing-

"I know what it's like to be shunned by court." Lady Korin continued. "But it's easier for the gossips to circulate rumours in your absence." She smiled. "It's much harder when you're standing right in front of them."

She did know. The daughter of an actress and a nobleman, Lady Korin hadn't always been acceptable in the eyes of society. Kimihiro looked out at the theatre audience, aware of the eyes on him. He didn't care about his reputation but it would get in the way of what he had to do. What _Doumeki_ had to do. Not that Doumeki seemed to care.

The thick velvet curtains on stage were rising. A sudden swell of music from the orchestra pit had heads turning back towards the stage. Eyes still lingered on their box but not as many.

Kimihiro's eyes roved over the occupants of the box seats across the theatre. Some of them were looking across the theatre at him but none of them were anyone he recognized-

He froze as his gaze fell on one of the lower boxes opposite. Lord Satoya.

And he wasn't alone. A young woman sat next to him, dark hair piled up on her head and trailing dark ringlets that brushed her shoulders. Her eyes were downcast, one of her hands held by Lord Satoya in his lap.

Lady Korin followed his gaze. "Lord Satoya." There was a hint of reserve in her voice. "He married recently. Lord Inoue's daughter, Esmelda."

Married. Kimihiro studied the lady more intently, noting the pale grave face. He couldn't tell at the distance but she looked tired, almost strained, to his eyes.

But it might not be the knowledge of her husband. Unpleasant as the man was, it was unlikely that he would treat his wife the way he had Calanthe. Not when the eyes of society were on him.

But that didn't preclude what happened behind closed doors. "A political match?"

Doumeki was watching him, curious about the interest he was showing.

But Lady Korin didn't seem surprised. "Yes." She stared at Lord Satoya's box. "Lord Inoue has been experiencing some financial difficulties and Lord Satoya some political ones. A marriage was arranged to correct that. The Inoue are respected if not the most wealthy of the older families."

Kimihiro stared at the downcast face of the new Lady Satoya. He didn't envy her situation.

"Unfortunately that's the way alliances are made in our world." Her eyes returned to Kimihiro and her smile warmed. "But I have been very lucky." She glanced at Doumeki. "And I have His Highness to thank for that." She reached out and laid a small hand on Doumeki's arm, eclipsing the cherryu blossoms and flowing water on his sleeve.

Doumeki actually laid a hand on top of hers briefly, what could have been the slightest of smiles on his lips.

It was a gentle look he gave the lady and Kimihiro suddenly wondered what had happened between them. Doumeki wasn't the most demonstrative of people.

Unless that included groping. A flash of irritation filled him as Kimihiro recalled the hand Doumeki had set on his thigh.

But Doumeki didn't show emotion readily. For him to act so familiarly with Lady Korin, there must be something between them.

Kimihiro turned his head to look at the carving on the wall next to his chair. But he wasn't seeing the elaborately carved tree in front of him. Now that he thought about it, Kimihiro could vaguely remember that their names had been linked, years ago-

Kimihiro clenched his hand over the arm of his chair, letting the hard wood cut into his palm. It wasn't any of his business who Doumeki had been with before they had met. And it didn't concern him now. If Doumeki hadn't insisted on courting him, Kimihiro probably wouldn't even have thought twice about it.

But he was.

Doumeki's hand lifted and Lady Korin slid hers from his arm, fingers tracing over the embroidered cherry buds, the dark graceful branches. "My husband gifted me this theatre. It is entirely in my keeping, its wellbeing my responsibility." Her dark eyes turned to him, her face grave. "And I take its protection seriously. Not only for our patrons but our staff."

They were coming to the heart of the matter. Kimihiro thrust the image of Lady Korin's hand tracing over Doumeki's arm out of his mind. He shifted in his chair so that he could more easily hear her words and block out the singing from the stage. A young woman was standing in a spotlight, her voice spiralling up to fill the theatre.

"I wasn't prepared to go to any of the practitioners in the city." She frowned slightly. "I've heard some unsettling rumours about their practices. I can't risk trusting them with the current situation and expect the appropriate discretion."

Unsettling rumours. Kimihiro suppressed the urge to frown.

"And you're concerned." He could feel Doumeki's eyes on him but Kimihiro kept his gaze fixed on Lady Korin's face.

"Yes." A crease appeared on her brow. "The theatre has been in the Southern Quarter for centuries and hasn't changed much." She lifted a hand from her lap, emeralds glistening on her wrist as she gestured to the wood work on the lip of the box balcony. Sinuous forms crawled across the sylvan surface, tiny carvings that clung to ward lines which looked like melting ice. "Most of the protections remain undamaged as far as I can tell. I've had Lady Iitaka check them in the past and she concurs with my assessment. But lately-" she frowned. "I have been worried." She glanced at Doumeki. "His Highness was kind enough to ask you on my behalf."

Kimihiro looked at Doumeki. He was expressionless. There was no hint of his motivations.

Kimihiro frowned. Lady Iitaka. Mariko. She didn't often leave the Northern Quarter. But she was one of the few practitioners in the city who deserved the title. If she had checked the wards, then they must be sound.

Unless something had changed.

"Has something happened to make you think the wards have weakened?" He reached out and set a hand lightly on the rail. A sharp jolt, almost like a small static shock, met his touch. His frowned deepened as he relinquished the contact. If anything the wards were over charged.

The music surged, welling out from the orchestra pit below. Lady Korin glanced at the stage for a moment before turning back to Kimihiro, earrings swinging gently from her ears. "There have been a number of incidents, small things that have worried me." Her lips pressed together. "But lately Miranda, one of our leads, has been experiencing difficulties. Accidents." There was an uneasy look on her face. "She had a fall down a flight of stairs several weeks ago. Though it was horrible, she was unharmed and I thought little of it at the time. But then one of her costumes caught on fire and she was nearly hit by a falling piece of scenery during a performance." Lady Korin shot a quick look at the stage once more. "And just the other day she was nearly strangled in the scenery ropes."

Accidents. Kimihiro rubbed his fingers together. The wards held. Almost too strongly.

He glanced down at the stage. The young woman singing under the spotlight was staring out at the audience, hands fisted in her skirts as imploring words poured from her mouth. Loss. A yearning to be free from the restrictions that bound her. Her voice rose, a bright peal of sound that echoed in the hushed audience as she abruptly fell silent.

Her eyes lifted and for a brief moment, her gaze locked with his. And then she was hurrying across the stage, elaborate skirts held up in her hands.

Miranda. He was certain it was her.

It was possible this had nothing to do with the second world. Someone might have a grudge against the young singer. Or it might simply be a series of unfortunate accidents. Kimihiro's lips thinned. But he would determine the truth for himself.

He turned back to Lady Korin. "Have you noticed any changes? Anything out of the ordinary. In regards to Miranda specifically."

Two men had come on stage and their voices were suddenly loud as Lady Korin was silent for a moment, thinking. "Miranda has been receiving more gifts recently." She started slowly. "It's not uncommon at the start of a new performance, but some of them seem to be from unidentified senders."

Gifts. Kimihiro felt a chill run through him. He exchanged a glance with Doumeki.

Lady Korin caught the exchange. "Does it mean something?"

"It might." Kimihiro hoped it didn't. "I'll need to see Miranda's room." Hopefully some of the gifts were still there.

Lady Korin glanced at the stage. "It shouldn't be a problem." Her dark eyes turned back to him. She nodded at the look on his face, a small smile on her face. "I assume that you would like to do so undisturbed."

"As soon as possible would be best." Before his presence caused problems. Kimihiro would prefer to leave before the next interval and the swarms of enquiries inundated Lady Korin's box.

The lady's dark eyes flickered. "I see." From the regretful tone in her voice, she did. Her wrist snapped out, flicking open her fan with a muted click. She studied the depiction of a small kingfisher, its turquoise wings spread in flight. "Your best chance would be during one of the acts. I'll have Daniel take you wherever you need." Her eyes moved to the curtained area behind them.

Kimihiro turned his head. The valet stood in the curtained archway, the red and black livery of the theatre he wore making him blend in with the furnishings. He bowed as he caught Kimihiro's gaze on him.

"If you want to avoid Lady Drayfus, I suggest you go now." Lady Korin's fan tilted slightly, marking a box seat further along the row. Her eyes lifted to Doumeki, suddenly lit with a devilish spark. "She's an ardent admirer of His Highness and is likely unsatisfied at the news her page has received."

Kimihiro glanced over at the box. A middle aged couple sat in the front seats, two young ladies seated behind him. The thin middle-aged woman was in the process of getting to her feet, her hands lifting her voluminous, heavily embroidered skirts from her legs.

Doumeki was already standing. With a haste that suggested he had encountered Lady Drayfus before. "How long?" The words were practically bitten out.

Lady Korin looked amused rather than offended. "There's an intermission in half an hour."

"Long enough." Doumeki glanced at him, and then he was suddenly leaving, with only a nod to take his leave.

Kimihiro hastily rose, and gave his own bow. "Lady Korin." Aware of the stares Doumeki's abrupt departure had drawn, he quickly ducked through the curtains.

Daniel was already opening the door out into the corridor, letting Doumeki out.

Kimihiro sped up and slipped out before the valet could close it again.

Instead of heading down the corridor the way they had come, the valet turned left towards a cluster of pot plants that formed a screen across the wall.

It was only as they drew closer that Kimihiro saw the door hidden behind them. Only a faint outline could be seen against the cream and burgundy wallpaper covering the wall.

"It leads down to back stage," Daniel explained as he started to step behind the screen of greenery. "It's used mainly for performances."

When an actor would suddenly appear in the audience to the surprise of all. Kimihiro wasn't one for theatre but he appreciated the use it provided now.

So did Doumeki if the look of satisfaction on his face was any indication.

Kimihiro studied him curiously. He'd never seen Doumeki so eager to avoid someone before-

"Your Highness!"

Doumeki's expression soured. Seeing the woman in the corridor behind him, Kimihiro could understand why.

Lady Drayfus had a self-satisfied smile on her thin face as she stalked down the corridor, two young ladies trailing in her wake. "There you are, Your Highness!" Her painted lips curved as she sank into a deep curtsey, her cream and peach skirts pooling onto the scarlet carpet. "I hope you're not leaving so soon?"

A slight quiver ran through Doumeki's jaw before smoothing into its usual bland lines. "Regrettably so." He didn't sound regretful at all. "I have business to attend to."

Lady Drayfus's smile faded slightly, her lips taking on a sour cast as she glanced at Kimihiro. Her eyes flicked back to Doumeki. "I can't see what could be so urgent that it would need your attention right this minute." She didn't give him a chance to reply. "Ladies, let me introduce you to His Highness, Prince Doumeki-Yamoto. Your Highness, my nieces: Lady Lalage Merton and Lady Noelle Grange."

Both women sank into deep curtseys. Lady Merton's face was flushed, her eyes downcast as she held her skirts out, the purple irises embroidered on the hem glinting against their black background. But Kimihiro saw how she glanced up at Doumeki through her lashes to gauge his reaction.

Lady Grange was more stilted in her movements. Silver lines - embroidered spider webs - and small butterflies glittered on her deep purple gown. But the gloved hands clenched in the fabric were too thin, her eyes shadowed under the makeup over their lids. She glanced up at him as she straightened.

Her face was that of a corpse. Barren sockets in a skeletal visage.

Kimihiro blinked. Her face was thin but not the death mask he had seen. But the image remained in his mind, an ominous shadow over pale flesh.

Doumeki gave a short nod, barely within the realm of courtesy.

"When will you next be at court, Your Highness?" Lady Drayfus was relentless. "We've all missed your company and-"

There was no inquiry of his identity. The lady was stubbornly ignoring him. It suggested she already knew who he was. Kimihiro wasn't surprised. Nor particularly offended. There were worse things than being ignored.

But this was costing time. Time that Miranda might not have. Kimihiro caught Daniel's eye.

The valet was standing quietly along the wall, well away from the hidden door. Kimihiro got the impression he'd rather they left the vicinity. And quickly.

"Your Highness." His words broke into Lady Drayfus' relentless flow, abruptly cutting her off. "If you'll excuse me, I have something I need to attend to."

Doumeki stared at him. As if he'd suddenly been offered salvation. "Excuse us." He gave a small nod to the ladies and then suddenly Doumeki's hand was his arm and they were leaving.

"Your Hi-" Lady Drayfus' call ended in an outraged gasp.

But Doumeki didn't look back.

And he didn't let go of Kimihiro's arm.

~x~X~x~

1) **kitsune** – foxes with supernatural powers, the ability to become human common among them. There are many tales in Japanese folklore of foxes assuming female human form and marrying and the same holds true in this universe. You might just get to meet one later on ;D  
2)** dress circle** – a curved section or tier of seats in a theater or opera house, usually the first tier above the orchestra.  
**stalls** – the front seats on the lower floor of a theater, situated just in front of the stage.  
**gallery** - the highest balcony in a theatre and generally the cheapest seats.

~x~X~x~


	98. Box Seat VII

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**BOX SEAT**

**VII**

The backstage of the Nine Foxes was as different from its foyer as day from night. Where the opulent entrance had been gilded with a gold glow, the lighting behind the stage was harsh and unrelenting. Bits of scenery cluttered the wings, the painted flats and paper mache props waiting on the sides of the stage for the next scene change.

A ladder ran up one wall to a fly gallery (1), the walkway trailing the thick ropes that ran out like the rigging of the ship, holding up the scenes. Several of them were already fitted in position, spanning the stage from one fly gallery to the other fixed on the opposite wall. The huge rolls of canvas were set to unfurl and drape down across the stage. There was a man on one of the thin walkways connecting the fly galleries above the stage inspecting one of the pulleys in the web of ropes. High above him the gridiron (2) trailed ropes like yarn.

Daniel led them through the wing, dodging scenery and ropes. The stage hands ignored them, intent on their tasks. One man ran past them and started up the ladder to the fly gallery as if they were part of the crew. The scene painter who was hurriedly making a few adjustments to one of the flats didn't even glance up as they passed.

In vivid contrast with the practical mechanics behind the scenes was the performance on stage. The music from the orchestra pit and the voices of the singers were more immediate, separated only by the heavy curtains shielding the wings. Glimpses of the stage revealed props and flats that were bright under the stage lighting, a brilliant street scene come to life.

"The dressing rooms are at the back of the wings." Daniel spoke in a low voice as he dodged a prop fashioned to resemble a tree. He gestured to the row of small doors beyond the last of the scenery. A number were open, displaying a jumble of mirrors, racks of clothes and scattered props. "You should-" He cut off as he caught sight of a group of young women in bright coloured dresses, waiting behind one of the thick curtains in the wings. One of them was staring at them.

"Daniel." She broke off from the huddle at a jog and stopped in front of them. Her stare was curious but Kimihiro didn't fail to note that she had blocked their entrance to the dressing rooms. Her eyes darted over them then slid back to Daniel. "More admirers?" Her voice was amused but her eyes were watchful.

"Practitioners." Daniel's voice was low. "Lady Korin asked them to look over Miranda's room."

The woman blinked, surprise plain on her face under the glittering make up. Some of the tension left her body, her guard on the dressing rooms relaxing. "Practitioners." Her eyes moved over them slowly and a smile stretched her lips. "I know who I'll call on next time I run into a stretch of bad luck." Her expression was suddenly cheeky.

"Bethany!" It was a hissed whisper. One of the other women was waving frantically for her to rejoin them. Some of the group were already slipping from the wing onto the stage.

Bethany glanced over. She turned back to them and gave a small fast curtsey. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Lord Practitioners." Her lips lingered on the words. She suddenly grinned. "Be careful not to make a mess. Miranda hates it when people mess up her dressing room." And with that parting advice, she darted off, full skirts rustling as she effortlessly ran over to join the rest of the disappearing chorus.

Daniel watched her for a moment before jerking his attention away. "This way." He led them to one of the doors and opened it. "You have about twenty minutes before the chorus returns." He took up a post near the door. "I'll be here if you need me."

"Thank you." Kimihiro stepped inside, Doumeki following, and shut the door. The sounds on stage were suddenly cut off, muffled to a bearable level.

Miranda's dressing room was small compared to the open dressing rooms they'd passed. But just like the others it was crammed with more objects than should have been physically possible. A large rack holding costumes and other clothing took up one wall of the room while a dresser - a heavy wooden desk with a large mirror - took up most of the remaining space. Its surface was covered with a scatter of brushes, cosmetics, hairpins and ribbons - a chaotic explosion - and a chair was tucked under it. An armchair faced the doorway, wedged into the space between vanity and costume rack.

Kimihiro's gaze shifted sideways. A small table supporting a large vase filled with flowers stood to their right. Various packages and wrapped gifts were set around the vase and on the floor around the table's legs.

Gifts and plenty of them.

Kimihiro's gaze strayed back to the scatter of cosmetics and accessories. There were a few smaller gifts on one side of the dresser as well. At least one had already been unwrapped.

A faint frown creased Kimihiro's forehead. The singer must have known the sender to open it so soon.

Or had someone pushy like Doumeki insist she open it at once.

He glanced at Doumeki. The Keeper's gaze was on the pile of presents on the table. Kimihiro hoped the thoughtful look on his face was an attempt to figure out who the gifts were from, rather than him getting any ideas.

Doumeki glanced up, meeting his gaze. "What are we looking for?"

"A cursed object most likely." Kimihiro studied the vase of flowers. They were all fresh - no bruising of petals or even slight discolouration. He glanced at Doumeki. "Sometimes it's possible to see the effects of the second world in the first. In the case of something like a curse, plants tend to wither." But there was no sign of that here.

His eyes turned to the wrapped presents. It was possible the layers of paper and other wrappings had concealed the effects of what lay within. Since he couldn't sense anything, that was a possibility.

But Doumeki might. Even with his warding, he tended to be sensitive to the hidden.

Kimihiro studied him. "Are you feeling alright?"

Doumeki blinked. And then his eyes slid to the presents. "Fine."

Fine. Kimihiro frowned. "Since Miranda is the only one suffering from any ill effects we can assume if the source is a gift, the harm is only directed to her. Otherwise anyone who touched it would have encountered misfortune."

But he wasn't going to take any chances with Doumeki's safety. Kimihiro reached into his sleeve and pulled out a snail pick. He held it out to Doumeki. "Here. Don't touch any of them directly. If you feel the metal change temperature, drop it and move away." He could have used a flower but as amusing as the image of Doumeki touching the gifts one by one with a lily would have been, an organic conduit had less protection.

Doumeki took the snail pick, studying the thin metal length. His eyes lifted to Kimihiro. "What about you?"

Kimihiro's eyes slid towards the smaller group of presents. "I'll check the dresser." The opened gift was tugging at his attention. There was something about it that wasn't right.

Doumeki didn't look like he liked that idea but he didn't say anything. Simply changed his grip on the snail pick and reached for the first present.

Kimihiro headed over to the dresser.

His eyes fell on the open gift. It was a compact, the gilt surface emphasised by the layers of tissue and wrapping that lay beneath it. It looked normal but he couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right with it.

Kimihiro slid another snail pick from his sleeve and touched the point to the compact.

Nothing happened. There was no change of temperature in the metal. No heat or cold to suggest there was any power invested into the piece.

A quick touch to the other gifts didn't revealed anything.

Kimihiro frowned and slid the snail pick back into his sleeve. He stared at the compact thoughtfully for a moment then reached out to touch it with a bare finger.

Nothing.

He scanned the dresser and then the room before his gaze came back to the compact. That was what was bothering him.

Kimihiro turned and crossed the room. He ignored Doumeki's questioning stare and opened the door.

Daniel turned from the stage, surprise in his eyes.

"Is there anyone Miranda is seeing?" It was that sort of gift. And Kimihiro doubted Miranda would have opened it unless it was something she was looking forward to receiving.

The valet was silent for a moment. "There is. About a month ago she started seeing a local merchant." He gave Kimihiro a disturbed glance. "Miranda seemed happy and he seems to be a decent sort."

A month. It fitted.

Kimihiro exchanged a look with Doumeki.

"I can go find him if you want to talk to him," Daniel offered.

"He's here tonight?" Doumeki was scanning the wing even as he asked.

Daniel nodded. "He comes for all of Miranda's performances. As long as they stay out of the way, Lady Korin allows partners access to backstage."

"If you can find him, I'd like to talk to him." And see if he was responsible for what was happening or just as he seemed.

The valet nodded and headed off down the wing. He soon disappeared from sight.

"There was nothing wrong with the gifts." Doumeki gave him a look that suggested he thought Kimihiro had known it and that was why he had allowed Doumeki to check them. "Do you think it might be him rather than a gift?"

Kimihiro ignored the implied accusation. It had been unlikely but there _could_ have been something wrong with them. "It's possible." But he couldn't be sure until the man was in front of him.

Unless-

Kimihiro headed back into the dressing room. If the gift had been from Miranda's beau, then there probably would have been a message with it. There still might be something he could learn from it before Daniel returned with the man.

~x~X~x~

Doumeki followed Kimihiro back into the room. He was somewhat annoyed Kimihiro had given him the pile of gifts to look over when he thought the source of threat was somewhere else.

Though he had to admit Kimihiro's willingness to risk himself to shield _him_ was encouraging. As frustrating as his ability to return the gesture was.

His shoe hit something, propelling it a short distance across the carpet. Something that glittered.

Doumeki bent and picked it up. A button. It glittered in the light, a smooth cream disk that resembled a flattened pearl.

He glanced back at the rack of costumes on the other side of the room. It could have come from any one of them. But it was strange it had ended up on the other side of the room without anyone noticing.

There was a muted rustle. Not the sounds of riffled paper. Cloth on cloth.

Doumeki glanced up at the doorway, hand automatically closing over the button, hiding it from view.

A woman stood in the open doorway. Scarlet ringlets brushed over power-pale shoulders, the corkscrew spirals like chains of dark garnets.

She wasn't one of the performers. Doumeki's eyes narrowed as he saw the dark green dress she wore. She wasn't one of the theatre's patrons, either. No one wore anything in that style any more.

Pale green eyes slid to where Kimihiro stood searching the dresser. One pale finger rose to her mouth, a pale bar across red lips.

He stared hard at her. He wasn't about to hide her presence from Kimihiro. "Oi."

Kimihiro gave no sign that he'd heard.

"Oi!"

He just continued searching the dresser.

A smile curved behind the pale finger.

Doumeki's eyes narrowed. He reached into his pocket. She was doing this.

His fingers found button and snail pick. He pressed them together.

A spark of warmth twisted up the slender metal cylinder. The button suddenly gave way under Doumeki's fingers, replaced by a warm flow of air.

Smoke.

It flowed out of his pocket and drifted towards the woman. Only to coil in her pale outstretched hand, reforming into a button.

The scarlet lips parted. **I am not the threat, Your Grace.** She leaned forward, the scent of strong perfume filling the air. Violets. **I intend Lord Watanuki no harm.**

Doumeki didn't move, locking gazes with her.

**I've come to warn you about **_**him**_**.** Her eyes glittered. **I know where he is.**

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro carefully sorted through the wrappings. The close attention paid off when he saw the corner of a thin card. He carefully pulled it free and studied the careful hand.

_For my Songbird._

It was unsigned.

Kimihiro frowned down at the words. It didn't look anything like the ancient hand he knew. The graceful loops and curls spoke of more recent penmanship. Though-

His frown deepened. There was something odd about it. Kimihiro stared closely at the letters. It took him a moment to work it out, it was so slight. Some of the letters were subtly different, a shift through the words. The first and second r looked like they belonged to different people.

It might not mean anything but an attempt by an admirer to write in a more elegant hand but it was enough to decide him. They needed to know if it was from Miranda's beau. And if it was, be able to make an assessment of the man. If it turned out that he was harmless, they might be able to get some more information.

And if he wasn't-

He turned back to Doumeki-

Only to find the room was empty.

Kimihiro set the card back down on the dresser. He crossed the room and stepped through the open door. Maybe he'd decided to wait outside.

Doumeki wasn't there.

Kimihiro scowled. Of all the times for Doumeki to wander off.

But the thought was tinged by a thread of worry. It was usually hard to get Doumeki to leave his side.

He glanced back at the dressing room. It was just as he'd left it. Doumeki had walked out it just like he had.

Lips thinning, he reached back and shut the door. He should probably wait until Daniel came back. But he was uneasy about Doumeki's absence.

A glance down the wing didn't reveal the familiar tall figure. Even amid the clutter, under the lights Doumeki's jacket was unmistakable. Kimihiro glanced at dark jumble behind the final flat that hid the back wall of the stage.

While Doumeki's innate warding hid him from spirits, it also hid him from Kimihiro's sight.

Kimihiro's lips tightened. There was no help for it.

~x~X~x~

1) **fly gallery **– A gallery extending along a side wall of the stage, some distance above the stage floor, from which ropes used in flying scenery are operated.  
2) **gridiron** – framework of steel or wooden beams over the stage used to support the sets of lines employed in flying scenery.

~x~X~x~


	99. Box Seat VIII

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**BOX SEAT**

**VIII**

Without Daniel's guidance, it was harder to navigate the stage. Thick ropes trailed from the ceiling and ran down to tackle blocks. Flats and props lay in tidy piles that had been stacked close together. Simply reaching the other wing was an achievement. The singing on stage sounded horribly close and Kimihiro found himself moving slowly least he dislodge something and set everything crashing to the floor, causing a noise that would disrupt the performance.

But he managed somehow. He found himself in the other wing, amid some of the flats being stored towards the back of the stage. Kimihiro threaded his way through them, looking for Doumeki. He couldn't see him but if he wasn't in the other wing where else would he have gone?

Kimihiro started down the wing. A stage hand glanced at him curiously as he passed but made no comment. The man started up a ladder to the fly gallery.

The abrupt cessation of the chorus turned Kimihiro's gaze to the stage. The women were hurrying off stage, holding up their long skirts. Kimihiro caught a glimpse of Bethany but she was already disappearing into the opposite wing.

He edged past a flat and several cables as he moved closer to the stage, hidden behind a curtain as he peered across it. There were a few people positioned in the opposite wing, watching the stage from their vantage points behind the curtains, but none of them were Doumeki.

One of them could be Miranda's admirer but Kimihiro wasn't about to cross the stage again and check. He was more worried about finding Doumeki at this point.

A new voice issued from the stage. A woman's voice.

Kimihiro glanced down the stage. With the chorus' exit only two people remained. A young man and woman. The woman he recognized.

Miranda.

Kimihiro studied her. She didn't look like she had come to any harm from contact with the compact. Maybe there hadn't been anything wrong with it. It might have been what it seemed, simply a gift from an admirer.

"She's a prime article (1), isn't she?"

Kimihiro jumped. He turned to see a young man standing behind him. He wore an elegant suit, a striped vest under a black coat with a modest amount of embroidery on the cuffs. Not one of the nobility but wealthy. Likely a son of one of the merchant families.

"She doesn't have much of dairy (2)." The man smiled, revealing a mouth of strong teeth. "But I think she'll turn out to be a real biter (3)."

Kimihiro wasn't quite sure what he meant by that last comment – the first was all too easy to guess - but the tone of the man's voice suggested it was something salacious.

"An angler (3), are you?" He raised an eyebrow, his smile taking on a nasty edge as Kimihiro remained silent. "Or maybe a back gammon player (4)?" His smile widened, at Kimihiro's confusion. "A gentleman of the _back door_. (5)" He glanced meaningfully at the young man on stage.

It took Kimihiro a moment to realize what the man was saying. That he was interested in the boy. Kimihiro glared at the man and started walking past him. He didn't have to listen to this-

"No so fast, Your Lordship." He moved, standing to block Kimihiro's way. The rough language was suddenly replaced by an almost courtly address.

He was boxed, flat on one side, curtain on the other and the stage at his back. Kimihiro's eyes narrowed, his hand tightening around the shaft of his cane. What Hikideshi had once taught him coming to the forefront of his mind. He didn't believe in violence but in this case he was prepared to use it if he had to.

A smile slid across the man's face. "Are you sure you want to make a scene?" His eyes flicked to the stage.

Kimihiro glanced back. The noise on stage had lessened. The music had softened and Miranda and the young man were talking to each other. If he got into an altercation, it would carry to the audience. A box seat and backstage were two different things.

Kimihiro bit back a curse. Where was Doumeki-

He glanced back at the man, only to freeze. There was dark outline around him, like a larger shadow-

A hand reached out with unnatural speed. Kimihiro was suddenly pinned against the flat, the man's hand wrapped around his throat. "You saw." His voice was regretful. "I was hoping I'd have more time."

Kimihiro clawed at the hand clasped around his throat. It wasn't choking him, just holding him in place. He dropped his cane, which landed with a muffled thud, and reached for the watch in his pocket.

"No you don't, Your Lordship." The hand tightened around his throat, cutting off his air. Another hand closed around his wrist and held it in an implacable grip that ground his bones together. "I don't intend to end just quite yet."

His head lowered close to Kimihiro's, his eyes curious. "I never would have been able to do this to a Watanuki in past. Most burn to the touch." One of his fingers loosened and rubbed along Kimihiro's neck, causing him to shudder in disgust. "But you're different." The look on his eyes was unnerving; a mixture of curiosity and distant cruelty. His grip tightened slowly around Kimihiro's throat. "I wonder how long you can hold your breath."

Kimihiro's lungs were already tightening. He wasn't about to let himself get strangled by a mononoke. Hikideshi would have his hide. Kimihiro let go of the hand at his throat and lashed out with a foot even as he twisted his wrist to reach into his sleeve.

He connected hard. Hard enough to loosen the grip on his throat a fraction.

Cold metal met his fingers. Kimihiro pulled the snail pick from its concealed sheath and slammed it, point first, into the wrist of the hand wrapped around his throat. It slid cleanly through flesh, grating against bone.

The grip at his neck vanished even as the hand around his wrist tightened into a crushing vice. "Blast!" The mononoke's exclamation was full of pain.

Kimihiro twisted his captive wrist, pulling at the weak point where the mononoke's thumb and fingers joined. It should have let him free but he didn't have the right angle.

He pushed off from the flat, twisting, trying to use his weight to pull free. Even as his eyes turned to the wing, trying to see-

A wall of black met his eyes. He stared then frantically moved his gaze as he realized his peripheral vision had gone blank too. He couldn't see anything.

Nothing. Blackness.

He yanked against the vice on his wrist and reached for another snail pick-

A hand closed around his free wrist in a crushing grip and pinned his arm up above his head. A body rammed into him and slammed Kimihiro against the flat. His head connected the unyielding surface with a sharp crack that echoed through his body.

Liquid splashed on his wrist and started running down his arm under the sleeve of his coat. Blood. The mononoke hadn't been able to remove the snail pick.

But his grip was still strong. He was pinned. The spirit didn't want a repeat performance.

"No one can see us." The words were suddenly whispered into his ear. "I can't do much in this body but this is the most useful."

Unable to see. And no one could see him. It was just him and the mononoke.

Panic flared followed by desperation.

He wasn't going to die here.

-_Yellow eyes. A too-wide grin. "_**_Kimihiro_**_."_-

Not like this.

The cane was at his feet, out of reach, and he couldn't get to the pocket watch. His strength was no match for the mononoke's. But he still had what was in him. Kimihiro reached for the power lying deep inside him and tried to rip it free. Attempting to channel it into the snail pick he'd stabbed into the mononoke's wrist.

Pain sliced through his right eye, an angry vengeful flare. For a moment, Kimihiro thought the mononoke had stabbed him in the eye. But then he realized its hands were still around his wrists, its grip loosened.

He sucked in air, only to start coughing as oily smoke invaded his lungs. His eyes slitted open. It wasn't just black any more. He could see the man who held him. The mononoke that inhabited the man. The spirit's presence was like a root that had invaded a drain. Thin tendrils that worked their way through flesh and bone, thickening into wires that worked the mononoke's human host like a puppet.

And the flesh the mononoke wore was just like lifeless wood. There was no resistance in the muscles that were directed so smoothly. No flashes of light where the man's soul tried to resist the invasion of his body. Not even the faint flares of awareness that a willing host exhibited. There was no light at all. Just dark spiralling roots that riddled the man completely.

It was the neatest, most complete possession Kimihiro had ever seen. What could only be the result of hundreds of years of practise.

It was no wonder he hadn't seen the mononoke for what it was.

"I've gotten careless in my excitement." The coiling smoke wrapping around the man had thickened, an acrid stench that had Kimihiro gagging. The mononoke smiled, the veil of darkness covering him slicing open in a mirroring smirk. "But with such temptation, can you blame me?"

Kimihiro's anger flared. Covering his fear. The sick-

He had to get free.

Kimihiro closed his eyes and concentrated on the snail pick. It might work-

"Let him go or I'll break you neck."

Kimihiro's eyes snapped open. He could barely believe his eyes when he saw who stood behind the mononoke, one arm round his neck, a hand like a vice on his jaw. Doumeki.

The hand around his wrist had loosened. The hand pinning his arm above his head. Kimihiro tore free, ripping his hands from the mononoke's grasp even as he reached into his pocket. Cold silver met flesh. "Ryuu."

The dragon swarmed up his arm and jumped to the floor, growing rapidly in size. Body coiled to fit around the flat and cables without spilling onto the stage.

The mononoke hadn't done anything, frozen in Doumeki's grasp. His eyes flicked from Kimihiro to the gold dragon which confronted it with a threatening hiss. "Impressive." He seemed to have forgotten the threat of death that Doumeki offered at his back.

Kimihiro eyed him uneasily, his wrist aching as he held hard to his watch. The mononoke was too calm. It should have been fighting to be free. Instead it had regained the control it had lost, human to his sight, normal except for the bloody snail piercing his wrist. And the small dark wisps of acrid smoke that escaped the wound along with the flow of bright red blood.

The mononoke smiled at his expression. "I believe you have me, Lord Watanuki." His smile widened, his eyes calculating as he surveyed the construct that stared at him unblinking. "You're more powerful than I had expected from the rumours." His eyes slid back to look over his shoulder. "You might as well let go, Your Highness. Breaking this body's neck won't kill me. Even if it's at your hands."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed dangerously. He looked like he wanted nothing more than to try the mononoke's words. But he glanced at Kimihiro.

Kimihiro nodded, the motion made curt by the pain that echoed thought his head. With Ryuu, there was no chance the mononoke could do anything. The construct would destroy it.

Doumeki frowned but he let go of the mononoke, taking a quick step back. Shoulders brushing the curtain behind him.

The mononoke stood still for a moment, then casually flexed his neck. His gaze slid to the stage, the performers who were continuing on unaware of the drama in the wings. "Perhaps we can take this elsewhere?" He slowly moved so that his injured hand was hidden from the stage. His eyes lifted from the snail pick protruding macabrely from his wrist to Kimihiro before flicking sideways to Doumeki. The Keeper hadn't taken his eyes off the possessed man. "I'd have no chance to run."

Doumeki didn't move.

Kimihiro didn't put away the watch he still held. "Did you give Miranda a gift today?"

The mononoke's eyes flickered as he registered the silent refusal. "A gilt compact?" He shrugged. "Yes, I did."

Kimihiro stared at him. It didn't seem to be a lie. But he hadn't expected the mononoke to give him a straight forward answer. "Why?"

An eyebrow rose at that question. "For the same reason I've been giving her gifts for the last month." His grip on his wrist shifted slightly and he winced as his fingers brushed the silver imbedded in the flesh of his host. He glanced up, eyes suddenly locking with Kimihiro's. "There are various reasons to stay. Revenge, guilt or-" his eyes glittered in the dim lighting "-a misguided sense of loyalty." Blood was running down his arm, a slow sliding drop that stretched into a thick line. "And then there are those who enjoy destroying things so much they can't leave."

It was strange to hear the words from a mononoke's lips. They usually didn't talk at all. Not in a rational manner. Most were so twisted by time that they had little of what had made them human. Speech and coherent thought were usually among their lost faculties. But this one was different. Kimihiro stared grimly at the strings of black wire that animated the body in front of him. He'd never seen one like it before.

"They're not like me." The mononoke seemed to have read his mind. "I like flesh, Lord Watanuki." His eyes had gone distant over the slight smile he wore. "I enjoy the chase. The sweet victory as I thrust myself into hot willing flesh." His voice clung to each word with the satisfaction of a connoisseur. "The noisy slap and slurp, the moans that emerge from parted lips." The mononoke's smile widened at the expression on his face. "It's the best thing this world has to offer." He glanced down at his wrist. "I'm not stupid enough to jeopardize my time here."

Doumeki's arms were crossed over his chest. "You stole a body."

"I borrowed it." The mononoke said it as if it was a vital distinction. His uninjured arm rose, hand gesturing to his chest. "This man has no mind. He was little more than a vegetable when I found him. I simply took his body before it could rot."

It could explain what he saw but Kimihiro wasn't convinced. A glance at Doumeki, the hard gaze he kept on the parasitic spirit, showed that he wasn't either. "You expect us to believe that? After what you've just admitted?"

The man's eyes narrowed, a look of offended anger crossing the mononoke's borrowed face. "I don't force anyone." A look of disdain replaced the anger. "Taking anything by force is the resort of those too weak to obtain things through their own efforts." The words were full of contempt.

Kimihiro studied him uneasily. If the mononoke hadn't revealed itself earlier, he would have been hard pressed to see what lay beyond the skin of the man who stood before him. His words didn't help with the image the man presented. It sounded frighteningly reasonable. It was possible he was telling the truth. If the man he possessed had been as damaged as the mononoke said, it would explain the utter control it possessed over the vacant body.

It was like that. Vacant.

The possibility gave an explanation for why the mononoke was so collected. Mononoke which took a host were more inclined to become unstable. There was a theory that inhabiting an unwilling individual weakened them, stripping away their human qualities until the raw emotions and the malign intent which kept them in the world were all that remained. If a host couldn't resist a mononoke, though, it would likely cost the spirit little. If the mononoke in front of him chose such hosts, it would explain why he had managed to survive for so long in such preservation.

Unless he was powerful enough to destroy his host entirely.

Kimihiro flexed his hand, feeling the ache in his wrist. If that was the case, he doubted he would still be alive.

"And that counts for the body you took, too?" The words were suspicious. Doumeki had apparently already made up his mind about the spirit.

The mononoke bit off a laugh. "What I've found in what's left of his mind tells me wouldn't mind."

"If you're so enamoured of this life, then it would be in your interest to cooperate." The mononoke was a resource. Not the one he would have liked but Kimihiro wasn't in the position to be picky.

Dark brows lifted. "Are you offering terms?" The mononoke sounded surprised.

"I'm offering you the chance to continue your existence." Just not necessarily defined as it was now. He wasn't inclined to simply let the spirit wander around as it willed. Its earlier attack testified to what it was capable of doing. Kimihiro eyed Ryuu. The dragon was coiled in preparation to strike, the construct's eyes fixed unwaveringly on the mononoke. No doubt, if the situation was different, the mononoke would have killed him.

Doumeki had the mononoke fixed with a dark stare that could only be called a glare. His eyes met Kimihiro's for a moment before flashing back to the mononoke. He wasn't happy with the situation but he was prepared to let Kimihiro handle it.

For the moment. Kimihiro didn't doubt for a moment that Doumeki would interfere if he didn't like what was happening.

The mononoke's eyes slid from one of them to the other. "Cooperate how?" The question was cautious.

"Information for a start." But there would be more. Much more if he decided to let the mononoke remain.

The body the mononoke inhabited went still. "What information do you want?"

Kimihiro met the dead gaze. "Everything you know about Him."

The mononoke was silent for a long moment in which the singers on the stage, the orchestra in the pit, were suddenly audible. But Kimihiro knew the mononoke wasn't listening. The frozen attitude of the body it possessed gave away what the spirit was doing. The mononoke was thinking furiously inside the flesh he wore.

Slowly the hand he clutched to his wrist lowered to his side. "He destroys anyone who gets in His way." The mononoke's words were quiet, almost emotionless. "If I speak to you, your offer is useless."

"If you don't speak to us, you end anyway." Doumeki said with irrefutable logic.

The mononoke stared at him for a long moment and Ryuu coiled tighter, rising up slightly. But the mononoke only turned back to Kimihiro. "I doubt I would be the only one to suffer." His eyes turned towards the stage.

Miranda. He had a point. And the concern - if it was concern - did something to raise his opinion of the mononoke. Not much but a bit. "I'll see to her protection."

The mononoke nodded slowly. "He has a body." He pulled a handkerchief from his sleeve and pressed it against his wrist to catch blood heading for the floor. "And he comes here sometimes."

"How do you know that?" Doumeki asked the question before Kimihiro could open his mouth.

The mononoke's gaze dropped to his wrist. "You didn't see me, Lord Watanuki, because there is no resistance. I have no need to use what power I have to restrain my host." He pressed the handkerchief gingerly to the wounds on his wrist.

"But He does?" The idea that the goryo might be battling with its host gave him hope. He would be easier to find-

"No." The mononoke was frowning. "I saw no sign of that." Something stirred in his eyes. "But there are other ways to come by such total control."

Kimihiro frowned. "A blood tie?" But that didn't make any sense. He hadn't left any descendants. Hikideshi had confirmed that He hadn't fathered any children before his execution. And after the disgrace of His crime, the line had died out in ignominy.

"That's one possibility," the mononoke acknowledged. But the reluctant tone of his voice suggested that wasn't what he believed.

Not a blood tie...Kimihiro's brow furrowed as he considered the alternatives. It left either a host that was willing or-

A hand grasped his arm and he looked up to see Doumeki looking at him with an expression of concern so intense it was close to anger.

Kimihiro was glad of the strong grip. "You think he's destroyed his host." Laving him an empty shell of a body with which he could do as he liked.

The mononoke shrugged. "It's a reasonable assumption considering his character." He locked eyes with Kimihiro. "But you'd be a better judge of that than I."

Ryuu shifted in warning, claws flexing one the floor.

The mononoke's eyes shifted towards the construct and then back to Kimihiro. "It's no secret."

Kimihiro pulled free of Doumeki's hold, aware of the Keeper's eyes on him. His mouth tightened. "What else do you know?" He didn't want to dwell on the past - it was the present that he was concerned with.

The mononoke stared at him for a moment then his eyes lowered. "At first I thought He was going to destroy me." His lips thinned. "I don't have the power to oppose him and if He wanted the theatre he could take it."

Kimihiro frowned at the territorial words. Spirits tended to become attached to certain areas but it wasn't the norm for mononoke. Once they had a body, they were usually free to move as they willed.

And that was why the currently situation was so dangerous.

"But He isn't interested in the theatre." The mononoke's eyes lifted. "Whatever He wants, it's with the people who come here." His eyes were emotionless, like chips of wet slate. "He sits in the box seats." His teeth flashed in a grim smile. "And everybody knows they're not placed to see the show."

Box seats.

"Who was he with?" Doumeki's eyes were fixed on the mononoke, narrow gold slits.

The mononoke's eyes flicked to Doumeki and he shrugged. "I usually stay backstage. I'm not interested in what's in the boxes." Again he grinned, this time the expression holding a hint of predatory delight. "_I'm_ interested in what's on the stage."

Kimihiro stared at him, disturbed. "Then how did you know He was here?" An uneasy sensation, like whirling splinters of ice, was unfolding in his gut. If the goryo wasn't restraining his host, He must have revealed himself in some other way. And Kimihiro hated to think what that might be.

The mononoke's eyes slid back to him. The body he wore was suddenly still, with barely even breath to show that it was living. "He knew I was here." The emotion had leeched from his face just as the animation had left the mononoke's borrowed body. The mononoke's lips twisted. "He made it clear that I shouldn't interfere."

And didn't destroy him. Kimihiro frowned. "Is he responsible for the incidents in the theatre?" The spirit should at least be able to tell him that.

The mononoke suddenly scowled. "No." His impaled hand twitched, causing the red stain dyeing the handkerchief to darken. "That's the _old hag_." The words were spat out. "She keeps trying to warn Miranda away from me." His lips thinned. "Being tied here has warped her worse than Him."

"The redhead?" Doumeki was looking back through the cables towards the back of the stage.

The mononoke's eyebrows rose. "I'm surprised you can see her." His voice sharpened. "She usually likes to drop things on people instead."

One of the cables quivered, a reverberating shudder that travelled up the line.

The mononoke bared his teeth at it before turning back to Kimihiro. "That's all I know."

Kimihiro considered the situation. He hadn't destroyed the mononoke. Why was the question. By the mononoke's account, He had the power to do so. But He hadn't even tried.

He glanced at the rope, now still. It might not have been the mononoke that forestalled Him. A mononoke was one thing but a spirit tied to the theatre was something else.

When a spirit became tied to something greater than themselves, they could usually access the power of what they were tied to, becoming part of the fabric of both worlds. To destroy one might destroy the other and such a move might have attracted the _ubusunagami_ of the area. The guardian spirits were stirring if the wolf Ayaka had accompanied was any sign. And He might not wanted to have risked that.

Even the mononoke served as a point within the network of protection in the city. Fixated as it was on the theatre, it would try to defend it. Not that Kimihiro approved of why it was at the theatre or how it was stalking Miranda.

Kimihiro's gaze turned towards the stage, fixing on the young woman. She was seated at the young man's feet as he sang to her, her brightly coloured skirts spread out in a multicoloured fan. He doubted that she knew exactly what was stalking her.

"I'll need proof."

"Proof?" The mononoke was wary.

Kimihiro fixed it with a dark stare. "Proof that this body is empty like you said."

The mononoke frowned. "I have your word as a Watanuki that you won't simply dispel me?"

It wouldn't be that simple. But it was reassuring the mononoke saw it as a threat. "You have it." He gave Doumeki a quelling glance when it looked like he was going to protest. "As long as you make no moves to escape."

The mononoke shrugged. "Very well." He grimaced. "It will be messy though."

The mononoke's body collapsed as soon as he finished talking, hitting the ground with a dull _thud_. Almost immediately coiling black smoke rose up in a twisting column. It slowly formed into a shadowy figure standing over the body lying on the floor.

Ryuu's body twisted, the construct rising up to form a shield against the suddenly anchorless spirit. But the construct didn't attack.

The mononoke gestured a shadowy arm toward the body at its feet. A line parted in what should have been its mouth, expelling thin tendrils of black smoke. **See for yourself.**

Kimihiro cautiously took a step closer and Ryuu moved forward, herding the mononoke back from the body it had vacated.

The mononoke didn't protest, only moved backwards, watching as Kimihiro knelt down next to the limp body.

The man's eyes were open and vacant, pupils small dots in wide rings of brown. His mouth was partly open, a thin line of saliva sliding from the corner of his mouth to leave a growing puddle on the floor.

Kimihiro stared at him, opening his sight wide to look hard at the fallen man. The longer he looked, the worse it was. There were flickering lines throughout his body but most were short, connections frayed, and others had been extinguished entirely. It was nothing like the brightly lit network it should have been. The man was like a basket that had been ripped apart by a maddened dog, vital strands ripped free and others barely touching together. There wasn't even a reaction when Kimihiro touched the snail pick impaled in his wrist.

A vegetable. It was an apt assessment.

Kimihiro stood and stepped back, closing his sight to a narrower range. He gave a small tug at the stream of power Ryuu was pulling from him, a silent order.

Ryuu's head snapped back towards him, dark eyes flashing, but slowly backed up, keeping an eye on the mononoke.

The spirit waited until the dragon had retreated to a safe distance then returned to the body it had discarded. Slowly the shadowy human form dissolved and spiralled down to settle over the man's body.

The flickering network suddenly lit up, dark lines wrapping around broken ends and reconnecting sundered lines. The dark coils spread, twisting through the entire network. They should have smothered the bright lines but the threads of light only brightened at their touch.

The man's body twitched. The mononoke slowly sat up, one hand wiping at his mouth. "Satisfied?"

"No." He hadn't lied about the body but Kimihiro wasn't going to let a mononoke loose without insurance. "I want a token."

For a second white showed around the mononoke's brown eyes. And then he let out a short bitter peal of laughter. "Very well." He took a grip on the snail pick and pulled it free. Blood immediately flowed downward, heading towards his sleeve. But the mononoke simply wrapped the bloody snail pick in his handkerchief, ignoring the bloody wound. He held it out. "Blood."

Ryuu snatched it out of his hand, engulfing the bloody packaged in one immense clawed hand.

Kimihiro was unmoved. Blood was power over the body the mononoke held not the spirit itself. "It's not enough."

The mononoke slowly stood. "I didn't think it would be." His hand had closed over his wrist, using his sleeve to staunch the flow of blood. "Shall we get going, then?"

"Going?" Doumeki was suspicious.

The mononoke grimaced. "To get some bone."

~x~X~x~

1) **prime article** – a handsome girl, a woman you'd want to have sex with etc.  
2) **dairy** – women's breasts  
3) **biter** – I won't give you the literal translation here ^^;;. Basically a woman who's hungry for sex. Lots of it.  
4) **angler** – a man trying to lure women for, er, mutual sport  
5) **back gammon player** – a sodomite  
6) **gentleman of the back door **– the same

~x~X~x~


	100. Box Seat IX

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**BOX SEAT**

**IX**

Doumeki didn't like it.

He didn't like that Kimihiro appeared to be taking the mononoke's word at face value. No matter its reasons, the spirit had taken someone else's body for its own. Just being near the mononoke was enough to put him on edge.

Doumeki gave the mononoke a hard stare. It was no longer hunched over in pain. With the removal of Kimihiro's snail pick it had regained its former insouciance. Except for the hand clasped around its wrist, the dark stain of blood, it could have been as Doumeki first saw it.

His stare darkened.

He'd caught the sly glances the mononoke would shoot Kimihiro every so often, the amused look that was only a cover for wariness and calculation. It was too confident.

He didn't want it anywhere near Kimihiro.

Doumeki hadn't failed to notice they hadn't seen anyone since they'd started following the mononoke. Except for the singers on the stage, it was as if everyone else had sensed the mononoke's presence and stayed away.

The mononoke suddenly glanced back over his shoulder. It caught his gaze on it and smiled. "You're wondering where everyone is." His smile widened. "Moving unnoticed is my strength. Except where you're concerned." His eyes slid to Kimihiro and then back to Doumeki. "Anyone else and His Lordship would have been in trouble."

Trouble. It had looked like more than that to him. Doumeki gave the mononoke a dark stare. He should have snapped his neck.

But Kimihiro didn't seem to think so. He shot a disquieted glance at the mononoke but didn't stop the spirit from leading them further into the maze of the theatre's back stage.

Ryuu though, seemed to share his distrust. The construct had draped itself over Kimihiro's shoulders, its tail wrapping around his waist. It hadn't taken its eyes off the mononoke for an instant, black eyes fixed in a threatening stare.

Even more cause to distrust the situation.

The mononoke led them past pulleys and blocks, the spider web of thick ropes and hawsers. Further into a tangle of props and flats that were tucked away in an open room used for storage. He walked past a pile of sandbags and ropes to awkwardly press his injured hand to the panelled wall.

There was a sharp click. Suddenly a section of the wall moved. A door.

"The old man who helped build this place insisted everything be done just right." Derisive amusement coated the words. The mononoke pulled the door open wider, revealing a shadowed staircase. "If the trapdoors in the stage were meant to be hidden, the doors behind the scenes should be, too. Crotchety old bastard." He let out a short bitter laugh. "At least he left something useful behind."

It sounded liked the mononoke had known him. Doumeki studied the mononoke's borrowed face. Perhaps he had.

Kimihiro had a strange expression on his face. Like something had just occurred to him. But he didn't voice it. He looked at the open doorway. "Are your remains down there?"

The mononoke was suddenly still.

Movement caught Doumeki's eye. Ryuu had risen on Kimihiro's shoulders, claws tightening on his jacket.

The amusement had been wiped from the mononoke's borrowed face, leaving it wooden. "Enough to satisfy my end of the bargain." He started down the staircase. "Mind the steps. They're steep."

Doumeki caught Kimihiro's arm before he could follow.

Kimihiro looked back at him, eyes wide in surprise.

"Can you trust it?" Doumeki doubted trust applied to mononoke but Kimihiro had to have some assurance to follow it as he did.

Comprehension filled Kimihiro's eyes. "No." His eyes narrowed as he glanced back at the door. "But once he's given his word, he won't be able to break it." His voice chilled, his grip tightening on his cane. "I can guarantee that."

Doumeki's grip loosened.

Kimihiro pulled free and ducked through the doorway, starting down the stairs.

Doumeki followed, one hand reaching into his jacket pocket. If the mononoke tried for Kimihiro again, it wouldn't survive. That _he_ could guarantee.

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro made his way down the stairs, aware of Doumeki following him down. He wasn't happy - Kimihiro could feel Doumeki's watchful stillness behind him like a coiled spring ready to flex.

He didn't trust the mononoke at all. But Kimihiro couldn't blame him. The mononoke's twisted personality wasn't one to inspire trust.

A match lit. The mononoke set the match to a lantern and adjusted the wick, throwing light up on the shelves lining the walls of the small room. Old props sat on the shelves: lace parasols, folding fans, a small knife, several pairs of gloves, a number of small pillows, a blouse speckled with dark brown stains and a set of chirimen (1). There were even sheets of music, yellowed programs, a bracelet, autographed handkerchiefs and what could only be a wax apple. They were grouped in small clusters: papers, props and mementos collected into small groups.

It suddenly dawned on Kimihiro that they could all be linked to women's roles. A queasy feeling slid into his gut.

Past conquests.

The image of the kitsune in the foyer suddenly flashed into his mind. Maybe the stories had got it wrong.

Kimihiro pushed the discomforting thought aside, concentrating instead on the objects themselves.

They were old. The frayed feathers and yellowed papers suggested decades if not centuries.

Kimihiro frowned. Normally he wouldn't have expected items like these to have remained untouched. Age usually brought power. And with props that had been used in countless performances, the centre of attention for thousands of people, that power was magnified. Normally any spirit within the vicinity would be attracted by them. But there was nothing here.

It was like the rest of the theatre. Curiously empty.

The mononoke had caught his surprise. "There aren't many of us left here." His eyes traced over the props. "Those who weren't scared off by _her_, fled the place when He came." He frowned. "The place still reeks like him."

"Reeks?" He hadn't known the goryo had been in the theatre until the mononoke had told him.

Brown eyes fixed on him briefly before the mononoke turned his gaze back to the shelves. "Humans can't sense it." He was distracted, his voice devoid of mockery. "But in the second word it's like rotting lillies." He reached for a shelf. "It won't help you, though." The amusement was back. "He just wanted to leave a warning."

"Then why mention it?" Doumeki's arms were crossed. His small pale eyes were fixed on the mononoke in a hostile stare.

A smile stretched the mononoke's lips. "Just making conversation. You wanted information, didn't you?"

Kimihiro ignored Doumeki's scowl. A warning. He wondered how many other places He'd left them. If they knew where He'd been, they might be able to work out what the goryo was up to.

The mononoke seemed to found what he was looking for. He reached out towards a fur cushion on one of the high shelves. He held his bloody fingers above it, not touching it. "Wake up."

The cushion twitched. And suddenly stretched.

Kimihiro's eyes widened as the thin creature suddenly wavered into view. It peered at him with small current-like eyes – grossly swollen yet wrinkled orbs – and then its attention snapped to the hand held out before it. Its mouth opened to show a maw full of tiny needle-like teeth.

The mononoke snatched his hand out of the way but the creature simply leapt from the shelf. It landed on the mononoke's shoulder and immediately swarmed down his arm.

The one with the injured wrist, not the hand he'd offered. Black smoke suddenly erupted as the creature bit into the leaking wound.

The mononoke cursed and hit it.

It fell to the floor. But just as quickly it was back on its feet, twining around the mononoke's legs, its thin rope-like body flowing across the floor with disturbing liquidity. There was blood on its face as it peered up at the mononoke small eyes lit with hunger.

The mononoke ignored it, reaching for the shelf where it had sat. His bloody hand closed on a small metal object sitting on the shelf.

An urn.

A small movement at the mononoke's feet caught Kimihiro's eye. The creature was staring at _him_ now.

Ryuu locked eyes with it and hissed.

He could feel the creature's gaze like a palpable force but Kimihiro turned his eyes back to the mononoke.

The spirit had taken something from the urn and sealed it again. Now he was rubbing his wrist on the metal container, smearing its tarnished surface with blood.

Doumeki had quietly moved closer and now took another step so he stood at Kimihiro's side.

Kimihiro shot him a glance. _Wait._

But the mononoke wasn't paying attention to either of them. He was staring down at the creature at his feet.

It was no longer staring at Kimihiro. Instead its eyes were locked on the bloody urn.

The mononoke's mouth twisted into a half grimace. Keeping his eyes locked with the creature, he reached out and set the urn back on the shelf.

It was in motion before he had even begun to let go. Almost faster than the eye could follow, it shot up the shelves, sharp claws scratching the wood. Within seconds it was sitting next to the urn, practically wrapped around it as it tried to eat the blood off its surface.

"It's stupid but cunning." He grimaced at the blood staining his sleeve, the gold thread darkened to rust. "And fierce enough to be a guardian." The mononoke gave the creature a hateful look.

They needn't have come here. Though Kimihiro wasn't inclined to let the mononoke out of his sight until their agreement was binding, it was strange that the spirit would reveal where more of its remains were.

He glanced at Doumeki. Especially when there was an exorcist who was more inclined to expel him than make a pact.

"Is there some reason why you've brought us here?" The same thought had occurred to Doumeki.

The mononoke was quiet for a while. "If something happens-" His eyes slid to Kimihiro. "I want them moved."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed. From the way he was suddenly looking at him, Kimihiro could tell that it wasn't the prospect of moving the props that concerned him.

If something happened.

If that were the case it might be Doumeki not him who had to take care of them. Kimihiro stared at the mononoke. And on that count, Doumeki would in turn become someone the spirit was indebted to.

But that might not be a bad thing.

Kimihiro surveyed the shelves. "Everything?"

The mononoke suddenly smiled. "I wouldn't want to leave _her_ anything." He picked up the lantern, lifting the glass cover to pinch the wick.

Doumeki grabbed his arm and started up the stairs. He clearly didn't want to be in the dark with the mononoke or what guarded its bones.

Kimihiro let Doumeki pull him away. He didn't like the idea either.

The creature's watchful eyes were the last thing he saw before the light was extinguished.

~x~X~x~

It was a relief to be in the wing again. Even if the sudden light made his eyes ache and a headache thud dully through his head. Kimihiro watched warily as the mononoke pulled the door back into place, setting it flush against the wall with a soft snick.

Doumeki was watching the mononoke, gold eyes hostile. If anything, the show of trust the spirit had given them had made him more suspicious. He was standing so close to Kimihiro their shoulders brushed.

Unnecessary with Ryuu poised to act. But the ache in his wrist made Kimihiro bite back any words he might have voiced. If Doumeki hadn't shown up when he had, things might have turned out very differently.

The mononoke glanced at them both as he set the lantern aside. Amusement flashed through his eyes as he straightened. "Bone, as promised." The mononoke held out a thin piece of greying ivory, not even large enough to span his palm.

Old bone.

Kimihiro accepted it, the small piece of bone barely a weight on his palm. It was definitely the mononoke's. Small threads of black drifted from it, flowing in the air as if they had just been cut.

The mononoke's hand closed around his wrist, his other hand suddenly shot out to clench around Ryuu's neck.

Kimihiro was suddenly yanked forward, falling against him.

"And my name." The mononoke's lips were practically brushing Kimihiro's ear. "Kitajima Goro."

He was suddenly jerked backward, grasp loosening on Kimihiro's wrist.

Kimihiro grabbed for a rope to stop from falling even as Ryuu surged off his shoulders and onto the floor between them.

Doumeki was behind the mononoke, one hand fisted in his jacket. His face was dark, his small gold eyes fierce as he tightened his grip.

"No need to worry, Your Highness." The mononoke looked back at him over his shoulder. "Lord Watanuki is safe with me." A mocking smile crept over his face. "Unless it's not his safety you're worried about?"

Doumeki stared at him then suddenly released him.

The mononoke smirked. He continued as if he didn't have the Southern Keeper at his back. "But I'm now known as Roland Ashcroft." He smiled. "Miranda knows where to find me."

Kimihiro didn't doubt it. He glanced at Doumeki.

The Keeper had his eyes fixed on the mononoke. "How many people have you killed?"

Surprise flashed through the mononoke's borrowed eyes. "None."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed.

An edge entered the mononoke's voice. "On my word, Your Highness." A dark smile bared his teeth. "I've never killed anyone."

_On my word._

It rang true. Despite the mononoke's actions – Kimihiro's lips tightened – it hadn't lied. And Kimihiro didn't think it would. Not in this. Oaths held weight in the second world. And the mononoke wouldn't likely have survived this long if it had broken its word.

Kimihiro glanced at Doumeki. He didn't look convinced. Not in the least.

It wouldn't be wise to prolong this. Aside from Doumeki's simmering presence, there was a growing ache in his right eye. A curious twinging echo in his chest. Ryuu had been drawing more power than he would have liked.

Kimihiro tucked the piece of bone in his pocket. "If you ensure the safety of this theatre and the people within it, I will let you remain here."

The mononoke's eyes were fixed on him, still. "I'm allowed free access to the theatre. Free to come and go at any hour."

Kimihiro nodded reluctantly. He didn't like it but he'd be certain to warn Lady Korin who would warn Miranda in turn. She would know the truth about her suitor. What she did after that would be up to her.

The body the mononoke wore was still stiff. "And _she_ has to leave Miranda alone." The man's lips thinned, eyes growing narrow. A thin thread of smoke suddenly drifted up from his bleeding wrist. "No more threats."

The smoke thickened, the grey lines darkening into thick black streaks. "She'd claim it was to warn Miranda away." He glared up at the curtains and rigging. "The old bitch. The truth is she can't stand it that Miranda is better than her."

The ropes thrummed, buzzing with anger. The scaffolding above creaked.

Kimihiro looked up.

A sandbag had shifted and was now slowly tilting sideways-

"Enough!" Kimihiro glared upwards, aware that Ryuu had risen up around him protectively. The construct's golden coils were looped around him even as the dragon peered upwards, jaws open in a silent snarl. The extra pull of power was making his eye ache worse. "If you would keep your claim here, I hold you _both_ responsible for the safety of this theatre."

The thrumming ropes stilled abruptly. The sandbag still slumped forward but it hadn't fallen.

The mononoke grinned, thin wisps of smoke seeping out from between his teeth. "Hear that, you old sow? We'll both be protecting this place." His grin widened. "And _everyone_ inside it."

A quiver ran down a line, snapping it out at the mononoke.

The mononoke didn't even move. He just grinned and said nothing more.

Kimihiro was starting to have second thoughts about keeping the two of them in the same territory. He fixed the mononoke with a hard stare. "If anyone does get hurt, neither of you will remain."

The mononoke's grin shrank. "Of course, Your Lordship." The smoke had thinned and now was dispersing as the mononoke regained control of himself. "Neither of us wants that."

The rigging was still. In that the diva seemed to agree with him.

The mononoke was staring at him. "And since we're now allies, I'll give you something for free."

Kimihiro regarded him warily. The mononoke looked disturbingly serious. "Information?"

The mononoke had a faint smile on its borrowed face. "Of sorts." He leaned forward, lowering his voice. "Something's happening downstream."

Kimihiro could feel his eyebrows lower. "Downstream?" The mononoke didn't look like he was lying. But Kimihiro didn't take the bait and lean forward. Doumeki was tense beside him and Kimihiro had learnt not to get too close to the mononoke. "What?"

The mononoke leaned back and suddenly smiled, his eyes watchful. "Something for you to find out."

Was it misdirection or actual information? Kimihiro stared at him for a long moment. "I'll look into it," he said finally. He glanced at Doumeki and started heading back towards the dressing rooms. Daniel would be looking for them by now.

With one last dark look, Doumeki followed.

The mononoke waited until they were nearly back in the wings. "And something for you, Your Highness."

Doumeki turned.

The mononoke's smile had shrunk to a bare curve. "Watch your back." His smile stretched. "Especially with His Lordship." His eyes met Kimihiro's and he grinned.

Kimihiro turned and started walking again, trying not to show his anger.

Doumeki shot him a sharp glance but he ignored it.

He was angry. Angry at the suggestion that he was a threat to Doumeki.

Especially since it was true.

"Ryuu." He called the construct back to the watch he held.

The dragon blurred, surging up his side and vanishing into the watch. A sharp pain lanced through his eye and then was suddenly gone.

Kimihiro ignored the dull ache that remained, the mononoke's words lingering. He didn't like that the spirit seemed to know so much. It was almost as if it had some insight into his situation.

The mononoke's smile flashed through his mind. Unless the mononoke was referring to something else-

His hand spasmed around the watch.

As if he was going to molest Doumeki or something. If anything, _he_ was the one who was in danger.

He scowled as he remembered Doumeki's impromptu present. The mononoke had no idea what it was talking about.

~x~X~x~

1) **chirimen** – juggling bean bags.

~x~X~x~


	101. Box Seat X

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**BOX SEAT**

**X**

Doumeki kept close to Kimihiro's side. After what had happened he was tempted to keep a grip on Kimihiro's arm but he knew the other man would only shrug it off.

He could see people again. A man was crossing one of the catwalks over the stage even as another on the fly gallery above was frantically working a gear to release one of the scenes. Stagehands were darting back and forth, starting to shift the flats in the wings. Whatever the mononoke had done, the effects were quickly reversing.

His thoughts darkened. If he hadn't gotten there in time, he doubted what would have happened to Kimihiro could have been reversed.

He glanced around the stage but the red-haired woman was gone. As soon as she had led him to Kimihiro, she had vanished.

He was in two minds about her. She had been the one to lead him to the mononoke. But she had separated him from Kimihiro to do it. If Doumeki had been with him, Kimihiro wouldn't have been in such danger in the first place.

She had been trying to show him how dangerous the mononoke was.

Doumeki had been swayed on that point but he was also aware she had waited to show the other spirit in the worst light. When she revealed the mononoke's location, it hadn't been a simple act of kindness towards Kimihiro.

He didn't trust either of them where Kimihiro's safety was concerned.

Doumeki reached into his pocket and pulled out the snail pick. He held it out to Kimihiro. "Here." He'd feel better if Kimihiro had it.

Kimihiro shot an irritated glance at him but it faded into surprise as he saw what Doumeki held. He reached out and took it. "Thank you." The silver utensil disappeared into his sleeve. An embarrassed expression crossed his face. He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "And thank you for back there." His voice was low. He didn't look at Doumeki, eyes on the watch he still held in his hand.

Doumeki simply nodded, his anger unravelling at the simple words. Kimihiro was safe and that was the most important thing. He looked back at the clutter of flats and props behind them. Now all that was left was ensuring it didn't happen again.

"Why did you let it remain?" He would have preferred to have finished things than enter a bargain with the mononoke

Kimihiro finally looked at him. "I can't simply remove a mononoke if they aren't harming anyone."

Doumeki eyes narrowed at his words. The mononoke looked like it had been trying to harm Kimihiro.

"And if they can secure the theatre it's one less avenue He has." Kimihiro grimaced. "We need all the help we can get."

Doumeki digested that for a moment. "Will He challenge them for the theatre?" He doubted they'd be able to hold it in that case.

"It's doubtful." Kimihiro's voice was tight. "More likely He'll go elsewhere."

Doumeki glanced at him. Kimihiro's expression was grim.

_But you'd be a better judge of that than I._

A scene fell, lowering slowly from above to reach the stage below, blocking the last two thirds of the stage. As soon as it had fallen, stage hands were moving out on the blocked section, hurriedly dismantling the set and carrying away props. Suddenly the stage was filled with people, a tide that flowed in and out of the wings. The frenzied action was usual even for an opera.

Two men moved past them, carrying a flat between them, and they paused near a curtain to get out of the way.

He caught a glimpse of red and black to the side. Daniel.

But he wasn't alone. Minako was with him.

The slight stiffening of Kimihiro beside him told Doumeki that he'd seen as well.

Doumeki started across the wing, dodging the people that suddenly made the wide space crowded.

Minako gave him a small worried smile as he approached. "I started to get worried when they hadn't started the change for the next act." Her eyes moved from the activity behind them to his face.  
_Are you alright?_

"We found your problem." He glanced at Kimihiro.

Kimihiro was staring at him, an unidentifiable expression on his face. His eyes flicked to Minako. "Lady Korin, is there somewhere we can talk in private?"

Minako nodded, her eyes on the stage crew moving around them. She turned to the valet standing next to her. "Daniel."

The man snapped to attention and started leading the way down the wing, cutting a path through the swarming crew for them to follow. They turned off into a small corridor and the valet opened the first door.

It resembled nothing so much as a small sitting room, complete with a chaise, two chairs and a small table. Kimihiro looked surprised but cautiously sat on one of the chairs at Minako's invitation.

Doumeki took the other chair, leaving the chaise to Minako.

Kimihiro fixed her with a sombre stare. "Lady Korin, do you know Roland Ashcroft?"

Minako looked from Kimihiro to him. "He's Miranda's beau." The words were said slowly, a sliver of trepidation sliding into her eyes. "He often comes to see her performances. Miranda asked that he be given access backstage and I saw no reason to refuse."

"Has he caused any problems?" Kimihiro's face was neutral.

"No." Minako shook her head, earrings swaying. Her eyes fixed on Kimihiro. "Lord Watanuki, are you saying that Roland is behind Miranda's accidents?"

Kimihiro eyes shifted. An aborted glance in his direction. "No." He paused, weighing his words. "She seems to have attracted the attention of a goryo."

She was frowning. "Lady Iikawa said that she meant no harm."

Kimihiro eyebrows rose slightly, as if he hadn't thought the practitioner would have told Minako about the spirit. "The situation is complicated." His fingers moved slightly over the head of his cane. He hesitated. "How much do you know about mononoke, Lady Korin?"

Minako's face had paled. "They possess people." Her voice was hushed, traced through with fear.

Kimihiro nodded. "Usually for malign purposes but that isn't always the case."

But he wasn't saying this case _was_ one of those rare examples, Doumeki noticed.

Some of the colour had returned to Minako's face but it was still too pale. Her eyes were too dark. They flicked to him then back to Kimihiro. "Is there a mononoke here?"

Kimihiro nodded, his expression curiously gentle as he held her eyes with his. "I've spoken with him and been given assurances that he intends no harm to anyone here. But his presence had caused some friction with the goryo who sees the theatre as her domain."

Minako was frowning, eyes intent on Kimihiro. "Friction?"

Kimihiro shifted slightly. "She seems to have taken that animosity out on the focus of his affections."

Comprehension lit Minako's eyes. "Miranda? Then the mononoke-"

"Is Roland Ashcroft. As far as I can tell his intention to court her is genuine." He paused, choosing his words carefully. "It's possible the goryo was trying to warn Miranda of his nature."

Minako had gone still, earrings hanging motionless from her ears.

"But there will be no further accidents." Kimihiro seemed faintly uneasy under Minako's stare. It was a small thing, an extra layer of formality that someone who didn't know him wouldn't pick up on. But Doumeki could see it. "They are now both in agreement that ensuring the safety of the theatre is in their best interests."

"And Roland?" Minako's dark eyes were still fixed on Kimihiro.

One of Kimihiro's hands moved slightly. "Miranda should be told what he is." His voice was quiet. "She should hear what he has to say." He met Minako's stare with a sombre gaze. "What she then chooses to do after that is up to her."

She gazed at him for a moment then slowly nodded. "Thank you, Lord Watanuki." Her voice was quiet. "I will talk to her."

"Mononoke usually seize possession of person's body against their will." Kimihiro added quietly. "But I do believe that Roland hasn't stolen what he now has."

Minako was listening. Her eyes flicked up to his, a silent question.

Doumeki gave a short nod. He wasn't convinced of the mononoke's intentions but on that count, he was willing to trust Kimihiro's judgement.

A bit of the strain left her face at the confirmation. Minako knew him well enough to know he had reservations but she also knew he wouldn't support Kimihiro's assessment unless he trusted it.

A small breath escaped her lips, part relief, part worry. "So the wards still hold?"

A faint smile crossed Kimihiro's lips. "Strongly."

A small but genuine smile bloomed in response to that. "Thank you Lord Watanuki. I am in your debt."

Kimihiro's smile was slightly strained. "If there is a debt." His eyes flicked briefly to Doumeki. "I must insist that it is owed to His Highness."

Doumeki barely stopped his frown. Something about the way Kimihiro had said that-

There was surprise in the glance Minako gave him. And sudden speculation. Her lips pursed as if she'd suddenly come to some decision. "Lord Watanuki-"

Kimihiro's eyes moved from Minako to him. He stood, suddenly looking tired. "I'll give you a few moments alone." Before Doumeki could say anything, he given Minako a bow and slipped out the door.

Doumeki stared at the closed door for a moment then turned back to Minako. Anger stirring under expectation while he waited for her to explain. He didn't like that Kimihiro had been excluded.

But Minako was unapologetic. "I asked Thornton to give you his support."

Doumeki didn't respond immediately. "Publicly?" It was a gamble, even for Korin.

Minako gave him a worried stare. "You'll need the support, Doumeki. Back room deals are all very well but you'll need the commons behind you." Her lips pursed, "In the end there's little difference between an opera and a festival. People are convinced by the impression they're given more than the substance." Her eyes flicked to the closed door. "At the moment Lord Watanuki is more of a known among the populous and you know what his reputation is. But even despite that, they know what he stands for."

Doumeki didn't say anything. He knew where this was going. Minako had said something similar years before.

"People don't love someone they don't know." She glanced at him, trying to gauge his expression. What she saw made her lean forward, eyes intent on his. "Doumeki, you're only known as the former Crown Prince. You may be the Southern Keeper now but that isn't how you're seen. Nobody knows you as you are now. Until they do, you can't expect wholehearted support."

He hadn't needed wholehearted support before. Just enough to win the Southern Ward. But now...Doumeki conceded that she had a point. He could sway merchants and city officials with his influence, even bring some of the nobles to his side with the appearance of political alliance. But what Minako proposed now-

It was public exposure to the point that he disliked. He wasn't inclined to push himself into the public spotlight. Not purposefully and in an attempt to gain publicity.

But he would to secure the Southern Ward's influence in the city. For Kimihiro he would.

Minako had been watching his face. A faint smile quirked her lips. "Give them a show, Doumeki. And they'll _want_ you to give them more."

And that was the key he'd have to use. Doumeki met her earnest gaze. "I'll need to speak to Thornton."

~x~X~x~

Kimihiro glanced at the door then looked away. He forced his thoughts away from the conversation behind the door. He'd left to give them the privacy Lady Korin wanted and he would respect that wish.

What Doumeki and Lady Korin discussed in private didn't concern him.

Kimihiro stared out at the activity on the stage. It was a fraction less frantic now but there were still stage hands moving around, making minute adjustments to props and sets. More than one person was up on the fly galleries and catwalks, working at the ropes that strung the stage like the nerves of a puppet booth.

He couldn't see Goro. The mononoke had vanished into the confusion. He would be there, though. Kimihiro had no doubt that the spirit would be watching Miranda. Obsession was a trait of spirits and the mononoke had set its sights on the young actress.

That the mononoke had been willing to enter a pact with him so easily had been a testament to how strong that fixation was.

Kimihiro shifted uneasily, fingers flexing on his cane. He wasn't entirely certain about the wisdom of allowing the mononoke access to the theatre but it was better than letting him free into the city. With the theatre at least he was tied to a point in the quarter and with their pact he would be bound to defend it.

He could only hope that Lady Korin and Miranda would find a path that would enable them to deal with Goro.

That had his thoughts turning to the goryo that was tied to the theatre.

It alarmed him that Doumeki had seen her and he had not. He hadn't even caught a glimpse of her and she must have lured Doumeki away from Miranda's dressing room. It was unlikely that he would have just wandered off on his own.

Kimihiro hadn't even sensed her.

That she had been able to hide herself testified to her strength. That she had shown herself to _Doumeki_ was alarming. He had no sight. To appear to _him_ would have taken little effort. Much less than hiding her presence and showing herself to someone who was unlikely to see her in the natural course of things.

But she had chosen to reveal herself to Doumeki, not him.

It was frightening that the second world was now seeing Doumeki as a point of mediation.

But that had been what he and Haruka had planned so long ago.

Kimihiro's mouth flattened. In the best of the countless bad scenarios.

There was a soft click.

The door opened. Doumeki holding it open for Lady Korin.

Lady Korin's dark eyes met his and she smiled. "Thank you for your patience, Lord Watanuki."

Kimihiro gave her a small smile. Suddenly tired.

Doumeki was staring at him. In a way that made Kimihiro want to snap at him.

He resisted the urge.

"I hope that the next time you visit the Nine Foxes it will be to see a performance." There was an edge of humour in her voice.

Kimihiro shot Doumeki a sharp glance. He better not have been making any future plans- "I'd like that." But if he had to return, he knew it wasn't likely to be a social visit.

She smiled. "Thank you for coming, Lord Watanuki. If you have need of anything, you only have to ask."

He gave her a small bow. "I was glad to be of service."

Her smile warmed as she turned to Doumeki. "And thank you, Your Highness."

Doumeki simply nodded.

"Daniel can guide you safely out." A wry expression crossed Lady Korin's face. "Without encountering Lady Drayfus again."

Kimihiro glanced towards the stage. The buzz of activity behind the curtain was a strange contrast to the singing which could be heard from the front of the stage. It was nearing the end of the act. And the last thing he wanted was to have to deal with the flood of curious who would take the opportunity the interval presented to try and locate them.

He was tired and somewhat shaken now that there was no danger. Returning to the mansion and getting some sleep was looking more attractive by the moment.

Doumeki shook his head. "I know the way. You should return to your box." He exchanged a glance with Lady Korin and gave her a small nod then started down the corridor.

Kimihiro made a hasty bow – which sent a small wave of light-headedness through him – and followed more slowly. Not just sleep. Something to eat first.

Doumeki cast a glance back and slowed his steps.

Kimihiro tightened his grip on his cane and tried to look more alert. The last thing he needed was Doumeki deciding he needed help.

But Doumeki didn't say anything, simply turned down a side corridor and led him unerringly to a small spiral staircase.

Kimihiro's eyes narrowed at the sight of it. It wasn't for the convenience of cast and crew. The bright polished wood and elegant runner were for patrons and members of the audience who were invited back stage.

And Doumeki was suspiciously familiar with it.

Kimihiro set a hand on the rail – noting the small foxes running amidst ward lines that resembled grass and trees – and followed Doumeki down the stairs.

The singing on stage suddenly rose, riding on a swell of music. There was silence then a sudden burst of applause filtered back, somewhat muffled.

The act was over. Hopefully they'd moved fast enough to avoid the curious.

The staircase terminated in a small corridor. A number of lamps revealed cream wallpaper and the same ward-linked carpets that had lined the mezzanine.

"We haven't had dinner," Doumeki said suddenly.

Kimihiro stared at him. Trying to work out what line of thought Doumeki's brain was travelling now.

Doumeki glanced at him. "Is there a restaurant you prefer?"

He wasn't asking him out for dinner.

Kimihiro stared at Doumeki's serious face. He was.

"I'm not going to have dinner with you in public." Not after they'd just shown up together at a theatre in full view of the public. The thought of sitting with Doumeki in some restaurant was enough to make him want to leave Doumeki right now.

"I know somewhere private." Doumeki's hand had closed on his arm, as if he had read Kimihiro's intention to flee. "The food's good." He added as if that was an incentive.

If it was anywhere Doumeki frequented, the food would have to be good. Though it was hard to imagine a restaurant that Doumeki visited regularly. It could be a street vendor, knowing Doumeki.

Kimihiro looked at the hand on his arm then up to Doumeki's face. "Do I have any say in this?"

Doumeki just looked at him.

Private. He doubted their formal attire would go unremarked wherever they went. But apparently Doumeki wouldn't last the trip back to the estate.

"It had better be private." He was aware of the niggling edge of light headedness that had been plaguing him since dismissing Ryuu. If Doumeki could admit to being hungry then he could do the same.

It was not out of any desire to have dinner with Doumeki away from Hikideshi's amused gaze. Or curiosity about Doumeki's idea of private.

Besides. The events of the morning crossed his mind. He needed to talk to Doumeki and dinner would provide the opportunity.

He tried to ignore the slightly smug look that crossed Doumeki's face at his capitulation.

~x~X~x~


	102. Box Seat XI

**ENTWINING FATES:**

**BOX SEAT**

**XI**

It wasn't exactly what he'd call private. But it wasn't precisely dinner, either.

Doumeki caught his eye. "What?"

Kimihiro glared at him, pulling the blanket further up around his shoulders. He'd made sure his clothes were covered but all it would take was one flash of an embroidered sleeve-

It was irritating that Doumeki made wearing a blanket look so easy.

Though the slurping noises he made were even more so.

"I thought you said we were going somewhere private." Preferably somewhere inside.

Doumeki glanced at the empty tables around them. A trace of annoyance starting to show on his face. "This isn't private?"

Kimihiro eyed the pond beyond the rail. A dark expanse of the water that glittered in shifting plane that swallowed all but the strongest light. "I'm not talking about customers." There was something out there – he could feel it even if he couldn't see it.

Doumeki followed his gaze, suddenly stilling as Kimihiro's words sunk in.

Kimihiro resisted the urge to rub at his eye. It still ached. And it wasn't doing much for his temper. But it wasn't Doumeki's fault.

He reached out for the small bowl of salt sitting on the table and scooped some up in his bare fingers. Ignoring Doumeki's stare, he suddenly snapped his wrist, flinging out the small grains. Some hit the ground and bounced off the table but most of it hit the water.

There was a splash.

But most importantly the feeling of being watched had dissipated.

"Likely an elemental." Not much of a threat if it was scared off so easily. Kimihiro picked up his eating sticks where they balanced on the lip of the steaming bowl. He was hungry. Hungry enough to venture the messy bowl of noodles Doumeki had ordered for him.

It was messy but good. Far better than the fragments of _something_ floating in it had indicated. Just the first hot mouthful had him feeling better, his weariness receding under the ministration of hot food.

Trust Doumeki to find a place like this.

They were on the grounds of a small shrine set on an inlet off the river. A pond encircled the small island the tiny structure sat on, only the light of the small lanterns set around it to mark it at all. The lanterns were shielded with brightly coloured paper screens, subtly altering the colour of each light, and the sparkling pattern that reflected on the water was like a fiery constellation. They hadn't seen anyone as they walked the thin gravel path along the pond's bank but Doumeki had led him unerringly to their destination.

As they drew closer, Kimihiro reasoned it had been partly the smell that had guided him. Doumeki seemed able to smell out a meal at a hundred paces.

Or maybe he'd just visited the place so often.

The source was a small vendor set up by the pond surrounding the small island shrine. A bright paper lantern had been hung from one side of the small stall which was little more than a stretched awning over a table and a portable stove. Rough tables and chairs had been set up along the edge of the pond, patiently awaiting more customers that it looked like it ever served. Lanterns hung in trees overhead and several large braziers, open flames in rough wrought iron baskets, were set close to the tables to warm people as they ate.

The old man manning it had shown no surprise at the sight of two blanket-wrapped men. He'd simply taken Doumeki's order and gotten to the business of making their meal. Doumeki had wandered off to find a seat and Kimihiro had been left with no choice but to follow. The scored tables and rough benches had done little to bolster his confidence in Doumeki's choice. And when the sake and bowls of noodles had arrived, there hadn't been much improvement.

Doumeki's noisy and evident enjoyment, though, had suggested it wasn't as bad as it looked.

Now that he'd had a taste, Kimihiro had to agree.

There was a soft scrape. Doumeki had a hand curved around his bowl, almost as if he expected it to be snatched away. "Is there anything else?"

It took Kimihiro a moment to realize Doumeki wasn't talking about food. He paused, eating sticks lowering to his bowl. "No." He couldn't feel anything out there anymore.

Doumeki eyed the remaining salt in the bowl but didn't reach for it. He picked up his own eating sticks. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Practitioners." Kimihiro frowned down at his bowl, the unease he'd felt that morning returning. "I received a doll this morning."

Doumeki's eating sticks had halted. "A doll." It was said flatly.

Kimihiro shifted a bit closer to the brazier standing next to the table. Despite its appearance, the flames were doing a fine job of holding the chill night at bay. He was grateful that Doumeki had left the seat closest to it for him. "It belonged to a girl in one of the residential areas near the docks." Kimihiro met Doumeki's gaze. "It contained a tanegai, a cursed seed that plants illness in a person."

Doumeki's eating sticks lowered. "The residential district." He frowned. "Near Kawagishi?"

Kimihiro nodded. "The girl's father was approached to sell his home. After he refused and his daughter fallen ill, money for a cure was then offered." Kimihiro's lips thinned. "After the recent edict, the land is valuable now that it can be divided." He poked at one of the pieces floating amidst the noodles in his bowl. "I suspect a local practitioner is to blame."

"I know of several practitioners in the area." Doumeki was frowning down at his noodles. "Alastaire has passed on news of their activities." His frown deepened. "Some of the returning wardens had some disturbing reports as well." His voice was grim.

"What sort of reports?" He didn't usually inquire into warden business but this was different.

Doumeki glanced at him then reached for the flask of sake. He started pouring it into one of the small cups. "Complaints about false charms. False exorcisms." He didn't sound happy about people going to the suspended wardens rather than those currently in the ranks. "They think there's worse." Doumeki pushed the cup across the table.

Kimihiro gave it a suspicious look but picked up the small cup and took a sip. The warmth of the liquid almost overshadowed the sake's bite, softening it to a mild tang. Worse. He was certain there was more. His mood darkened. And much worse. Kimihiro took another sip.

Doumeki watched him as he poured sake into his own cup. "You think so, too." It wasn't a question.

The blanket was falling off his shoulder. Kimihiro pulled it back up again before reaching for his eating sticks. "None of them are practitioners in the real sense." He scowled down at his noodles. "Krischan Skeller was the last practitioner in the area and he died five years ago." His mouth thinned. "The practitioners you mention moved in after that." With no one to stop them.

He took another sip from his cup, trying to drown the fizzle of anger he felt. There had been attempts to oust them – flyers stuck to walls and concerned local meetings - but there was a stream of new customers that flowed through the area with the river. The new practitioners had flourished and the clientele had only drawn more dubious practitioners to settle in the area.

Doumeki had gone back to his noodles but the expression he wore said it was a distracted gesture. For a moment there was only the crackle of the fire in the brazier and Doumeki's now-muted slurps.

But the activities of the practitioners near the docks wasn't the only problem. Kimihiro absently curled his fingers around his bowl, absorbing the heat. He took a breath. "They're not the only ones."

Doumeki looked up, eyes narrowing.

For some reason it was hard to meet his gaze. "The number of practitioners within the city have multiplied in recent years. In the Southern Quarter as much as any in the city." Possibly more. Since Haruka's death, there had been no one with any real authority to oppose them. The south was the only quarter in the city that had lost its Keeper. And Doumeki, while bringing stability back the quarter, hadn't moved to quash the rogue practitioners nested within it.

Doumeki's full attention was focused on him. "The doll isn't the first."

"No." There had been many calls for aid over the years. Cleaning up the mess left by unskilled practitioners had been a constant in his life. But not until recently had he seen practitioners that were real threats. Most were unskilled or used simple guile to dupe the desperate; there had been fewer cases where a practitioner had acted in knowledgeable malice. An exception that was now becoming the rule.

"How many?" Doumeki reached for his cup.

Kimihiro blinked, thrown by the question.

Doumeki took a sip from his cup. "Practitioners," he clarified.

In the quarter, or the city? Kimihiro suppressed a sigh. "Several dozen within the Southern Quarter are cause for worry." He paused for a moment, searching for the right words. "And I'm concerned by the situation in court."

Doumeki frowned. He took a slow sip of sake, eye slowly drifting out to the pond. "I'll need a list."

A list. Kimihiro eyed Doumeki uneasily. "What are you planning to do?"

Gold eyes flicked back to his. "What would my grandfather have done?"

It was like being drenched in icy water. What would Haruka have done? "Banned them from practicing." His eyes fell to the sake in his cup. "If they had any skill, he would have sealed them." A last resort to ensure a practitioner would never be able to use their skills for harm again.

He pulled the blanket closer around him. The fire held no warmth, the queasy ice-like chill filling his body cancelling out the heat of the flame. It was a fate that he might have met if Haruka had not spoken for him.

Doumeki set down his cup. "Could you do it?"

Seal someone. The cup was a hard curve in his hand. "It's usually the province of a Keeper." Usually.

Doumeki's eyes flickered at his words, narrowing slightly. "Could I do it?"

The sake rippled in his cup. Kimihiro slowly set it on the table. "It's an exorcist's power," he admitted reluctantly. "You should be able to in time."

Doumeki's eyes were fixed on him. An unnervingly intent stare. "Could you teach me?"

Teach him.

Teaching Doumeki to seal someone was the last thing he wanted to do. He wished that he didn't know the method. But it was weapon, a skill that he feared Doumeki would need. And he wasn't going to deny Doumeki that. "I will if that's what you want." He tried to keep the reluctance out of his voice.

Doumeki had heard it. But he simply nodded. "I do."

"Then I'll teach you." Because there was no choice. Had never really been a choice.

Silence fell over the table. The fire's snap in the brazier was suddenly loud. Kimihiro's gaze lowered to his bowl. He set his eating sticks on the rim and pushed the bowl aside. He wasn't hungry anymore. Not that there was much left. Somehow he'd managed to eat most of the noodles anyway.

Kimihiro glanced out at the pond. The coloured lights of the lanterns reflected off the dark water barely rippling. The dark plain was unusually still.

He recalled the earlier splash. He hadn't sensed any harm from it but whatever it had been was incredibly shy. Most spirits tended to show themselves to him.

Except for the diva at the Nine Foxes.

A low scrape had him turning back to the table. Just in time to see Doumeki dragging _his_ bowl across the table.

He shouldn't have been surprised. And he wasn't really. "Are you really going to eat that?"

Doumeki simply gave him a look and reached for the flask.

Kimihiro didn't protest when Doumeki refilled his cup.

~x~X~x~

It could have been the sake or he was just that tired but Kimihiro found himself leaning against Doumeki as the carriage headed out of the city. Doumeki wasn't comfortable exactly but he was warmer than the carriage seat and his arms were safely wrapped in his own blanket. And most importantly he didn't say anything.

Something which Kimihiro was grateful for.

He was tired. He'd used more power today than he was used to. First with Ryuu that morning and then at the Nine Foxes. His risky attempt to channel power into something he wasn't in physical contact with. Even with his recent efforts to extend his control, days like this reminded him of his shortcomings.

And how much the coming days would test him and Doumeki both.

The future was uncertain. Even more uncertain than when all this had begun. He'd tried to keep Doumeki as uninvolved as he could. But it had all come to nothing in the end. Doumeki was in the middle of it now and everything was spinning out of control.

The only thing he could do was what Haruka had asked. Ensure that Doumeki had everything he could give him.

Kimihiro squeezed his eyes shut, feeling the ache of his eye suddenly tighten in a lightening stab. It was best done sooner than later. "When are you free?"

The shoulder under his shifted slightly. In surprise Kimihiro thought. He knew the slight pause was Doumeki thinking.

"Tomorrow night." He sounded normal but Kimihiro could tell he was curious. "After dinner."

Usually he came before dinner. But Kimihiro pushed his curiosity aside. It wasn't Doumeki's eating habits he was worried about. His eyes opened to the sight of the opposite bench, its rich velvet upholstering. "We'll start tomorrow." He was tempted to advise him to eat well before he came, but that was redundant. Doumeki always ate well. "Don't be late."

Doumeki usually woke early and he'd need his sleep in the coming days. Sealing required a lot of power. And learning how to do it even more. They had several exhausting sessions ahead of them.

He leaned back against the seat, no longer leaning against Doumeki. Suddenly feeling exhausted. He ran a hand through his hair, wincing at the twinge in his wrist. He'd have to talk to Hikideshi about what they could use. Inanimate objects. That would work at first if they had enough power in them. Maybe something from the library. After that they could work up to living things. Plants. Animals.

But they'd need a human subject.

Kimihiro grimaced, trying to ignore the flicker of fear that churned through him. In the last stages, he could use himself-

It wasn't something he was looking forward to.

The silence in the cabin suddenly registered through his weariness. Doumeki was being quiet. Too quiet.

Kimihiro turned his head.

Doumeki had wormed an arm free of his blanket and now had a small box in his hand. A packet of peppermints. He was peering into the small box as if it held the most interesting thing imaginable.

A small disbelieving sound escaped Kimihiro's throat.

Doumeki looked up. He lifted the box slightly in enquiry, jostling the contents. "Do you want one?"

Kimihiro's eyebrows lowered. Here he was, worrying what Doumeki was thinking and he'd simply been staring at his stash of peppermints. "What makes you-"

A peppermint was suddenly thrust in his mouth. Pushed in by two of Doumeki's fingers.

Kimihiro considered biting them but trying not to choke on the sweet was a priority. He coughed it out of his throat and caught it in his teeth as he glared at Doumeki.

Who had helped himself to another peppermint and was now sucking his fingers clean.

The fingers had just been in Kimihiro's mouth.

Doumeki caught his eye. Not changing expression as he slowly drew his fingers out of his mouth.

Kimihiro nearly spat Doumeki's peppermint back in his eye.

He crushed it instead, trying to get the round wet feel of it out of his mouth. The sharp crystalline shards were somewhat reassuring.

Something flickered in Doumeki's eyes. "Do you want another one?"

Kimihiro glared at him. _Do you want to lose your fingers?_

Doumeki blinked. He closed the box and tucked it safely into his pocket once more.

"I'll be over by nine." Doumeki said it like nothing had happened.

Kimihiro shot him a glare. He'd make sure Doumeki was taught properly – the full exhaustive regime. If he tired Doumeki out, then he might get some reprieve from Doumeki's alarming advances.

He pulled his blanket up more firmly around his shoulders and folded his arms. Making sure he wouldn't slump onto Doumeki's shoulder again.

Frighteningly aware of what he was prepared to do for Doumeki. For Doumeki's sake.

Aware that he was slipping into dangerous waters, where leaning against Doumeki's warmth – even with its attached perils - was tempting.

It wasn't Doumeki's peppermints, he was worried about.

~x~X~x~

Though the peppermints are scary as well XD

I hope you all enjoyed that, my dears. And that the wait was worth it. You had some things confirmed, people from the past have shown up and some new characters who are indeed important. If it felt like bridging piece, there's a reason for that. *slow smile* Pawns are being shuffled around.

We're drawing close to the end of this arc. There will be a few shorter pieces and one last long one. And I don't intend to make you wait so long for that one ;D

~x~X~x~


End file.
